Blood Child
by Eleantris
Summary: A Tip-Off leads Gene and Alex to a flat, where they find a young girl laid asleep next to the murdered body of her mother. Slowly, the team get dragged into a chilling murder case and Alex has to ask herself, can she live without Gene by her side? Galex.
1. Tip Off

**Hi. So here is the first chapter of my new Ashes to Ashes story! To anyone who read The Blurring Lines of Time, yes there will be a sequel but I won't be writing it probably until I've finished Changes. (My DrWho/Ashes Crossover). So I hope you like this and please review. I am going on holiday tomorrow for two weeks so there won't be any updates for a while but I will try as hard as I can when I get back to get one to you! I have now got four stories on the go now though so updates won't be every day, but I promise not to leave it too long! Happy Reading!**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes, it belongs to the BBC. But I have a plan...mwahahaha! (Don't worry; I'm just being my usual mental self.)**

**Chapter 1 – Tip Off**

* * *

Alex could hear a phone ringing in the distance, somewhere faraway. She rolled over and mumbled something incoherent as the ringing slowly got louder. As her eyes fluttered open she suddenly realised that the ringing was coming from the phone on the bedside table. Her phone.

She groaned and sat up, pulling her hair from her tired eyes and picking up the phone with a sigh.

'Hello?' She said sleepily.

'Bloody hell Bolly, you sound like death. You been up with another thatcherite wa-'

'No, I have not!' Alex retorted. 'What the hell do you want Gene?'

'I want you and your fancy French knickers down here at the station, ASAP. 'Yer later and we've got a tip off.' And before Alex could reply, he'd slammed down the phone on her.

She groaned again and put it down, pulling the covers off and getting out of bed. She showered quickly and pulled on her tight black jeans, a purple shirt and favourite white leather jacket.

* * *

'Ah, finally decided to come in have 'yer?' Gene said as she walked into his office and perched on the other side of his desk.

'Yes I have.'

Gene raised his eyebrows at her. 'Are you sure you were alone last night?'

'Why? You jealous?' Alex quickly replied, her lips quirking into a smile.

'Don't flatter yourself Bolly.' He said as he stood up, grabbing his coat. 'Right come on, let's fire up the Quattro.'

'Guv, what do you want us doing?' Chris asked as Gene and Alex made their way out.

Gene turned and glanced around. ''Well Christopher, you and Raymoundo here can have a look at the wallets in Lost and Found, drag some scum in off the streets and accuse 'em of nicking 'em. Ok?'

'Yes Guv.' The two replied as they hurried off, probably more likely to find the nearest game machine rather than do what Gene had asked.

'Umm, what do you want me to do Guv?' Shaz piped up from behind her typewriter.

Gene shrugged, 'make them two coffees.' He said before walking out of the door, Alex in tow.

* * *

'You know Gene, Shaz isn't here to make us coffee and tea.' Alex told him as they reached the Quattro.

'Bolls, just shut 'yer red lipstick coated lips and get 'yer privately educated arse into the car.' He said, getting into the car himself and pulling on his leather driving gloves.

Alex sighed and rolled her eyes, but got in nonetheless. 'You really are a sexist pig, you know that Hunt?'

'And you really are a posh mouthy tart. Now shut 'yer gob.' He commanded as the Quattro screeched away at full speed.

'Do you have to drive like a complete maniac?'

'Yes. It lets me release frustrations. Stops me from slapping 'yer.' He replied in true Manc Lion fashion.

Alex pretended not to have heard the comment and continued. 'You know, the only reason men drive madly is because they're trying to impress the opposite sex.'

Gene stopped outside a dingy flat block in the outskirts of London and turned his head to look at her. 'Are you trying to suggest something DI Drake?'

'No. Merely commenting.' She said with a smug smile as she got out of the car and looked up at the concrete tower block.

'Is it in there then?'

'No Miss Marple, the flat block we're really looking for is around the corner. I just thought I'd park in front of this one for a laugh.' He retorted sarcastically.

Alex just sighed and went inside, Gene following behind. 'Which floor?'

'Twenty. Is there a lift?' He asked her, looking around for one before staring with dismay at the stairs.

'No, we're gonna have to take the stairs.' Alex said.

Gene tutted. 'Oh bloody hell; are they trying to kill me?' He pulled off his gloves. 'Right, you first.' He said brightly.

Alex shook her head and smiled. 'Oh I don't think so Mr Hunt.'

'Why not?' He asked innocently.

'Because I don't particularly fancy having you staring at my backside whilst we walk up twenty flights of stairs.'

'Fine.' Gene huffed, stepping in front of her and beginning to climb the grotty stairs.

* * *

They didn't talk the rest of the way up. The only sound being the clink of Alex's heels against the linoleum floor and Gene's heavy breathing, which steadily got heavier as they went higher.

Once they had reached the twentieth floor Gene sighed and leant back against the wall, close to panting.

'Tired Gene?' Alex teased.

Gene looked at her. 'Just because I am not as physically fit as you Bolly Kecks-'

'Physically fit am I now Gene?' Alex's lips tugged upwards into a smile. She'd got him now.

'Shut 'yer mouth Bolls. Put that brain of yours to some use and look for flat 367.'

'Whatever you say boss.' She said, strolling off down the corridor. 'It's here!' She called, stopping in front of a door about half-way down.

Gene stood back up straight and walked down to where she was standing. 'Right Bolly, stand back.'

Alex took a step back and watched as Gene rammed into the door, with no luck. The door stayed put. She bit back a laugh. 'Good Gene. Very manly.'

Gene just grunted and shoved the door again, this time with more force. The door fell in and they both stepped inside, taking in the scattered debris and shattered glass. Carefully they made their way through to the main room. Alex gasped and clutched at Gene's arm for support.

'Oh my God.'

* * *

**So...what do you think for a first chapter??? Reviews are welcome! Incredibly welcome in fact, tee hee! X =D**


	2. Crimson

**Hola! Yes, I'm back from sunny Spain!! Tee hee, thanks for all your great reviews while I was away, here's the next chapter, hope you like it and keep those fab reviews coming!!! Also, two things. I couldn't fit this onto the summary but this story ignores Series 2 and is set about a month or two after the end of Series 1. **

**Second thing, this story is dedicated to BlondVelma, because she helped me a lot with the plot and names in this story and she's given me a lot of help with my writing on the whole, so a big thanks to you and extra cookies hun!!! Plus, check out her stories, they're really great!!!**

**Happy Reading!!! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't Ashes, wish I did, but don't. Will have to be content with owning this story, tee hee. =D**

**Chapter 2 – Crimson**

Alex clutched at Gene's arm tightly for support as the rusty, metallic scent of blood crept up her nose, making her feel slightly nauseous. She wasn't a squeamish type of person, but blood on this scale was bound to make her feel a bit queasy.

'Weak stomach Bolls?' Gene jested, though not particularly unkindly.

Alex shook her head. 'It's just...horrible...' She muttered, turning to stare at the sight before their eyes.

The lounge was a tip, a coffee table had been overturned and shards of broken glass surrounded it. A throw of the sofa was a crumpled heap on the dusty floor, a smashed up picture lying upon it. The walls had odd dark red streaks running down them and the TV had fallen over, the screen smashed and wires snapped.

But even worse than the messy state of the room, was the bright crimson blood seeping into a cream rug in the centre of the room. The bleeding woman lay on her back, looking slightly peaceful in death, despite the chaos surrounding her body. Her long auburn waves, almost matching the colour of her blood, was strewn out around her pale, ice cold face and was matted into clumps; her head sitting in a pool of the dark crimson blood. She was quite young, and pretty, with soft features and a petite frame. But now her skin was a deathly pale and blood covered her face and upper body.

But even the horrific appearance of the dead young woman was not the most disturbing thing in the room. No, that fell to the small girl laid, obvious asleep due to the rise and fall of her chest, by her mother's side. The little girl, with her ginger hair, lighter than her mother's, clutched to the dead woman's body with small hands, and coated in yet more crimson blood. There were tear tracks down her innocent face as she lay so close to her mother's side.

'Gene...' Alex whispered, still transfixed by the poor young girl.

'S'alright Bolls, Uncle Gene's on it.' Gene said softly, almost surprising Alex, she'd never known him to be so gentle. So she was even more amazed as she watched him slowly approach the little girl, detaching her arms from around her mother's bloodied torso and picking her up gently.

'I'll take her outside and see if she wakes up. You'll need to radio forensics Bolly.' He said, stepping over a smashed vase and carrying her out of the flat.

Alex just nodded to him and watched him go, before pulling out her radio. 'This is DI Drake to forensics, is anyone there?'

'Yes, what is it?'

Alex swallowed and tore her eyes from the bleeding woman's corpse. 'We've got a suspicious death, flat 367, Charles Court, Hotten Road.'

'Right, we'll be there as fast as we can.'

'Ok, thanks.'

With that she shoved the ancient radio back into her jacket and made her way outside, but she paused at the doorway when she heard Gene talking in a low voice.

'What's your name then? It's alright; no-one's going to hurt you. I'm a police officer. Everything's going to be alright, my name's Gene.'

Alex peered around the doorframe just far enough to see Gene crouched down with his back to her in the dingy corridor and the little girl wipe her damp face with the back of her hand.

'I'm six, my name's Milly-'

But after that Alex heard no more. Because suddenly everything was drowned out by a loud beeping sound that seemed to be originating from inside her very own head. The corridor and room around her seemed to go black as she stood there alone, under a bright spotlight. Then, she heard distant voices, yet they seemed distinct at the same time...

'_...We've got the go ahead...'_

'_...Get the bullet out...'_

'_...In forty-eight hours...'_

'Bolly! Bolls!'

Suddenly everything became light again and Gene was stood in front of her.

_I've got forty-eight hours..._

'Mmm...what? Huh...bullet...forty-eight...mmh...' Alex mumbled incoherently.

'You drunk Bolls?'

'No, I am not drunk Gene, it's eleven o'clock in the morning.' She stated before grinning suddenly. 'I'm going home soon!' She said brightly.

Gene had to restrain himself from rolling his eyes. 'Bolls, you are not going home until the Gene Genie says so, and I don't say so. Especially not now it looks like we've got a murder case on our hands. Now-'

He was cut off by a tug on his coat; both Alex and Gene looked down to see Milly stood there, staring up at Alex with bright blue eyes.

'Gene, who's she?' She asked Gene, pointing up at Alex.

Gene bent over and picked her up, both still looking at Alex.

'This is Alex, Milly. She's a police-officer, so don't worry. Now, she's a bit of a nutter but just ignore it, I do.' He said with a smirk at Alex.

She rolled her eyes and reached out to take Milly, resting her on her hip.

'What yer doing Bolly?'

Alex sighed and began walking towards the stairs, 'these stairs had you deat-beat on your own, you'd probably collapse from the effort of carrying a six year old down them.' She called to him as she made her way down, Gene following behind them.

Gene grunted. 'Well I get a good look at your arse this way Bolly, so I'm not complaining.'

'What's...what's an ar...arse?' Milly asked timidly.

Alex clicked her tongue. 'It's a very bad word, and Gene shouldn't say it, or look at it. Should you Gene?'

'Oh, what? Oh...yeah, no, I shouldn't say that. Don't listen to Uncle Gene-'

'Because I don't.' Alex finished.

'No, you don't Bolly.' Gene replied with an unseen pout.

They walked the last few steps in silence before they reached the bottom and went outside. In front of the Quattro a white van had pulled up and a team of men wearing white coats clambered out.

'Ah, forensics. Good.' Gene said, walking over to the Quattro. But suddenly, Milly began pointing at the men.

'Gene! I've seen them on the telly; they look at dead people, Gene, who's died?' She asked between sobs as she looked frantically from Gene to Alex, back to Gene again, reading their expressions.

'Mummy! Is my Mummy dead? Is She?!' Milly cried, reaching out towards Gene, who took her from Alex, bemused as the little girl wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her head in his shoulder.

'Gene...am I never going to see Mummy again? Is she dead? I thought she was just un...uncon...unconscious!' Her questions came out muffled by Gene's coat and she stumbled over the last word.

'Milly, everything'll be alright. I promised, remember? So do you want to go back to Alex, so I can drive us back to the station?' Gene said, putting her down gently and gesturing to Alex. But Milly just clung to his leg, crying and begging for him to pick her up again.

'It's alright, I'll drive.' Alex said, holding out her hand for the key.

Gene shook his head. 'No way, I am not willingly letting a mouthy tart like you drive _my_ Quattro.'

Alex sighed. 'Gene, she needs you. Just let me drive.'

'No.' Gene repeated obstinately.

'Fine...' She muttered, too low for him to hear. She took a step towards him, 'Gene...' She said quietly, looking up at him through her eyelashes as she slipped one arm around his waist, under the black coat.

Gene's breath caught in his throat as she looked down at her. 'Bolls...'

'Gotcha!' Alex exclaimed cheekily, pulling his car keys from his pocket triumphantly.

Gene just stared after her, dumbfounded, as she got into the driver's seat and leant out of the window.

'Oh come on! Get in.' She called, putting the keys in the ignition.

**So...what do you think??? Please review for the chance of getting cookies and brownies!!! Tee hee. X =D**


	3. Post Mortem

**Hi! Thanks for all the great reviews for the last chapter; I'm glad you're all enjoying reading as much as I am writing! This chapter is for all you, who, like me, are obsessed with Galex!!! But as always, this story is dedicated to BlondVelma! Happy Reading! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes, wish I did, but I don't...it's a hard life. =D**

**Chapter 3 – Post Mortem**

Gene unwillingly got into the backseat, Milly refusing to let go of his coat as she sobbed into his chest, soaking his white shirt. Before she started the engine Alex twisted in her seat to look at Gene. 'Don't you trust me Gene?' She asked.

'I do trust yer Bolly, just not driving my pride and joy.'

Alex rolled her eyes and turned back around, pulling the car away from the curb. Gene was surprised by her driving skills, she didn't throw it around corners or stamp on the brakes quite as viciously as he did, but she did drive as fast as him, quite obviously enjoying herself as she turned the wheel expertly.

Once they were all stood back outside the station, she turned again to Gene, who still had to walk with Milly clinging to his neck. 'So, how'd I do?'

Gene pouted his signature pout. 'Not bad, but yer not making a habit of it.'

She smirked and gave him a mock salute, saying, 'yes sir.' Before walking into the office.

Everyone looked in astonishment as Gene walked in, the little six year old girl clutching tearfully at his shoulders as he sat her down on his desk. She looked up at him, wiping her eyes with the tissue he handed her. 'Right Milly, I'm just going to the toilet to change my shirt, can you stay here for two minutes?'

Milly nodded. 'Ok...' She said in a small voice, watching as Gene made his exit.

*

'Ma'am?'

Alex spun around to face Shaz, 'yes Shaz?'

'Who's the little girl?'

Alex glanced over at Milly who was biting her lip timidly as she sat on Gene's desk. 'Her name's Milly, we found her asleep next to her mother's body.' Alex explained with a grimace.

Shaz gasped, 'oh, but that's horrible!'

She nodded. 'Yeah, could you tell Chris and Ray for me, just to make sure they're up to speed?'

'Yeah, sure Ma'am.'

Alex gave the young Essex woman a smile. 'Thanks Shaz.' She said, going to pick up the phone which had begun ringing.

'DI Drake, Fenchurch East.'

'Hi, we've got an ID and Post Mortem on that woman, if you want to come down?'

'Oh, yeah that's great, thanks.'

'Ok, see you then.'

'Bye.'

Alex hung up the phone and turned back to Shaz, 'that was forensics on the phone; they've got the Post Mortem. I'm just gonna go get the Guv and we'll go down, then when we come back we'll get you all up to speed.'

Shaz nodded. 'Ok. Anything I can do till then?'

Alex looked over at Milly again. 'Just make sure she's alright, get a drink and maybe a biscuit. I think we've got some pink wafers left.' She said with a smile.

*

Alex burst into the men's toilets, men jumping in surprise as she walked in, bold as brass. Gene was stood in the corner, just about to change his shirt, wet from Milly's salty tears.

'They've got a Post Mortem on the woman, I told them we'd been down there in a minute.' She told them as he removed his shirt.

He wasn't wearing a vest like the time they'd got stuck in that vault and Alex couldn't help but let her eyes wander over his bare chest. He was, (surprisingly) slightly muscular, if a bit padded...she absentmindedly bit her lip gently as she stared at him.

Gene glanced up at her and smirked. 'Like what you see Bolly?'

Alex jumped. _Yes. _'You wish, Hunt.'

'Yeah, I do.' He muttered, too quietly for anyone to hear as he pulled on another (dry) shirt and did it up, grabbing his tie and throwing it around his neck, struggling to do it up.

Alex waited patiently as he fumbled with the knot before she eventually sighed and stepped forward. 'Come here, for god's sake. We want to get down there sometime before Christmas.' She said, reaching up for the knot and tying it herself. Gene looked down at her hands as she tied it for him, trying to keep his mind off of how close she was stood to him. He could smell her hair...

'There.' She said, patting it down and looking up at him. Sea-green eyes met caramel ones, neither of them blinked. Gene's gaze flickered from her eyes, to her lips and back to her eyes again. Then the moment was lost in a matter of seconds as Alex broke the contact and turned away.

'Come on, we better go.' She called, striding out of the room and hiding the slight blush on her cheeks.

Gene inhaled and exhaled slowly before following after her.

*

Gene and Alex stood across from each other, looking down at the woman's body as the Forensic Scientist began to speak.

'She was killed by a direct bullet to the side of her head, though judging from the marks on her upper arms-' he pointed to the bruising on her arms, 'and blunt force trauma to the back of her head, I would say that she'd been pushed forcibly into hard, prior to being shot.'

Alex nodded. 'Like a table, or a wall.'

'Yes, exactly like that.'

'And...' She crouched down so that she was eye-level with the body, 'judging from the fibres underneath her nails and the general state of her nails and hands, she put up a fight.' She concluded as she stood up again, smiling, almost smugly.

Gene pouted again. 'ID? Time of death? Or doesn't anyone bother with information that's actually useful anymore?'

Alex rolled her eyes. 'Estimating from the way she was bleeding and where she was laid, plus the depth of the injuries, I'd say she died around...ten, ten-thirty?' She said, looking to the scientist for confirmation.

He nodded and smiled, looking only at her, ignoring Gene. 'Exactly what I was going to say DI Drake, you know an awful lot about forensics, I'm impressed!' He complimented.

Alex beamed back to him. 'Thank-you, it's nice to hear that _someone_ at least appreciates my opinion.' She told him, shooting a glance at Gene.

'If yer quite done, I'd like to know an ID, so I can get on with my job.'

The examiner turned his attention to Gene. 'She's called Samantha Jones, divorced from her husband Pete Crowley and her daughter's Milly Jones.' He told him testily.

Gene pouted and nodded. 'Right, thank-you. Come on Bolly, let's go.' He said, making his way out.

Alex gave him an apologetic smile. 'thank-you, and sorry about DCI Hunt.' She said quickly, before following Gene out.

'Gene! Where are you going?!' She called down the corridor.

Gene turned around. 'To check out the CCTV at Charles Court, see if there was anyone suspicious around or before the time of death. Is that alright with you Madame Fruitcake?'

'Well hold on, we've got to get the rest of the team up to speed first, then we'll go.'

'Well, you do that Bolly, I'll go check out the CCTV.'

'Gene, you're the Guv! You have to make sure they know what's going on, Chris and Ray don't even know about the case yet!' Alex argued.

Gene sighed. 'Fine.' He said, heading back to CID.

*

'Right everyone, I'm only going to say this once because me and the Lady Bolls need to dash off, looking for evidence, so listen up!' He barked as he burst through the doors.

'We've got ourselves a murder case; victim is Samantha Jones, lived in flat 367, Charles Court, Hotten Road. This was where she was shoved up against a wall and shot in the head. She died around ten-thirty this morning and that's her daughter Milly over there.' Gene told them quickly, pointing at Milly who was nibbling on a pink wafer.

'And she's divorced from her husband, Pete Crowley. So, Ray and Chris, could you please do some research on him? I want to know job, other family, location, everything you can.' Alex added, stepping forward.

Gene looked at her. 'Bolls, who's in charge here?'

Alex turned to look back at him. 'Oh sorry, did you want to give the orders?' She said sweetly.

'Yes, I do.' Gene turned back to Chris and Ray. 'What she said.' He grunted, causing a smug smile to cross Alex's face.

'Right-o Guv, what are you two doing?' Ray asked suspiciously, glancing at Alex.

'We're going to look at CCTV tapes at Charles Court, see if we can see anyone suspicious.' Gene told them.

'Oh...right.' Ray said, looking disappointed. 'Ok Guv, what was his name again?'

'Pete Crowley, now get a move on. I want information by three o'clock, gives yer two hours. Now, mush!'

Chris nodded. 'Right.'

*

Gene and Alex walked out into the corridor. 'Fire up the Quattro?' Alex asked.

'Exactly. So I need the key Bolly.' He said, holding out his hand.

Alex pouted playfully. 'And what makes you think I've got it?'

Gene's eyes widened angrily. 'You haven't gone and lost it?' He said dangerously.

Alex laughed and pulled the key from her pocket, dangling it high in the air like a toy. 'No, it's here.' She said, but pulled it out of the way as he reached out to grab it.

'Bolly! Give me that ke-' But his sentence was cut short when he made another attempt to take his key and accidently stumbled.

This somehow resulted in Alex standing back against the wall, Gene's hands on the wall either side of her as he unintentionally leant over her.

Alex looked up at him, breath catching in her throat as the key dropped to the floor and their eyes met for the second time that day. Alex unconsciously licked her lips slowly as Gene stared at her intently and leant further forward...

**Sorry, another evil cliff-hanger!!! Please review, how did I do on the Galex scale??? X =D**


	4. Damn You Gene Hunt

**Hi! Wow, I continue to get blown away by the lovely reviews I'm getting for this story, thank you so, so much! Here's the next chapter, hope you like it and it doesn't disappoint! As always, dedicated to BlondVelma for all her help! Happy Reading!**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes or... (Brace yourselves) Gene Hunt. (Boohoo!)**

**Chapter 4 – Damn You Gene Hunt**

Suddenly Shaz burst through the doors to the side of them, 'Ma'am, Milly-'

Gene sighed and quickly stood back, both of them turning to look at Shaz.

She paled and her eyes went wide as she glanced between her two superior officers, they hadn't just been about to...? 'Umm...erm...sorry, but Milly's insisting on coming with you.' She told them quietly.

'With us?' Alex asked.

'Well, the Guv actually. She keeps on asking, 'where's the nice man?'.'

Gene smirked at Alex, pointing to himself. 'See, nice man, me.' He said, striding back into the office. Alex stared after him, still trying to recover her composure after the..._previous situation_...

'Anything else, Shaz?' She asked, pushing her fingers into the front pockets of her tight jeans.

'No, that was it.' Shaz said hurriedly, disappearing back inside. Seconds later Gene emerged carrying Milly and Alex bent down to pick up the keys, handing them to him while avoiding meeting his eyes.

They made their way outside in silence; Gene put Milly down once they'd got out of the building. 'Right Milly, you can come with us, but you have to let me drive, Ok? You can sit in the back with Mrs. Frilly-Knickers.'

Milly nodded. 'Ok...' She whined, pouting.

Alex laughed. 'She pouts like you Gene.'

'I don't pout, Bolly.'

'Yes, you do. And don't deny it because Chris, Ray and Shaz will all agree.'

Gene made a non-committal grunt and walked off towards the Quattro, Alex following behind. Once they were all in Alex turned to Milly. 'So, how many pink wafers did Shaz let you have then?'

Milly frowned in slight concentration, a small line appearing on her little forehead before she eventually held up nine fingers.

'Nine?!' Alex exclaimed, pretending to look incredulous.

She nodded and gave Alex a shy smile. 'Yeah.' Before she began staring out of the window, leaving them all in silence once again.

Silence wasn't good. It allowed Alex's mind to wander. Wander back to a few moments before, how it felt when he looked at her like that, intensely...Was he going to? What would have happened if Shaz hadn't come through the doors? Did he want...? Did _she_ want him to...? Millions of crazy questions flew around her confused mind, she was so uncertain. Had he _meant_ to lean forward like that? Had he _wanted_ to look at her that way? Or was it all a mad trick of the light, or part of this crazy dystopia she was stuck in.

But then a memory came to her; a man. A tall man, taking her small hand in his, stepping in front of her to block the view of the burning car. A red balloon flying up into the sky. The smell of smoke and burning metal being smothered by another scent as he held her securely to him. _His_ scent. Whisky, cigarettes and a hint of something else...it was nice.

Alex looked out of the window of the Quattro, the same words she had been thinking for weeks returning to her once more as she remembered that day.

Maybe this is real. Maybe, just maybe, _he_ is real.

Gene interrupted her musings by screeching to a stop. 'Come on Bolly, get out. We haven't got all day.'

Alex glanced at Milly. She was still staring out of the window, up at the tower block that had been her home. She wondered what the little girl was thinking about, how much had she seen of her mother's death? If anything at all. Why hadn't she tried to go to the neighbours for help if she thought her mother was just unconscious? These were all questions she knew that would have to, at some point, be asked. But not now.

Gene sighed impatiently. 'For Christ's sake Bolly, get your bony arse out here now!'

Alex rolled her eyes and tugged on Milly's hand. 'Come on Milly, everything will work out.'

Milly turned and Alex saw that she had been crying. 'My Mummy's really dead, isn't she?' She said, wiping her tears away with already damp hands.

'I'm sorry.' Alex said genuinely, squeezing Milly's hand. 'Do you want to stay in the car, rather than come in with us? I'll stay with you; Gene can go on his own.'

Milly sniffed and looked across Alex's shoulder out at Gene, who had his back to them.

_Probably having a bloody cigarette. _Alex thought.

'Can Gene stay?' She asked quietly.

Alex looked out at Gene too. 'I'll ask him, hold on.' She got out of the car and went over to him. Sure enough, he was smoking; he did put it out under the toe of his crocodile skin boots when she reached him though.

'Finally decided to come out, have yer?' He said, turning to her. 'Where's Milly?'

'She's got a bit upset, I told her I would stay in the car with her while you check out the CCTV on your own, but...'

'But what?'

'She wants you to stay with her instead.'

'Me?!' Gene exclaimed, amazed as Alex was, if not more so, by Milly's apparent attachment to him. He pouted thoughtfully. 'Ok, I'll stay. But don't be long.' He finally decided, walking back over to the Quattro.

Alex smiled. 'Why? You worried about me?' She called after him.

He turned. 'No, just don't go bloody flirting with the guy on the desk. It wastes time.' He told her before getting into the car.

* * *

'Hello, I'm DI Alex Drake; I want to have a look at your CCTV, please.' Alex said, flashing the man a warrant card.

'Oh, right. Just in that room there.' He told her, pointing to a 'NO UNAUTHORISED ENTRY' door.

Alex nodded. 'Ok, thanks.' She replied before going into the small, dark room. She flicked on the lights and searched the shelves for what she was looking for. 12 September (today), 1981, 10-11:30. That was the one.

Carefully she pulled it out and put it into the VCR, pressing fast-forward until she saw something suspicious.

_Interesting..._

She quickly took out the tape and slipped it into a plastic evidence bag, making sure to turn the lights back out as she left the room. The man on the desk seemed to be waiting for her. 'Excuse me, but where do you think you're taking that tape?'

'It's evidence in a murder enquiry, I'm taking it for further examination. Is that a problem?' She said coldly.

He pursed his lips and looked her up and down. 'Can I have another look at your warrant card?' He asked, stepping in front of her, blocking the door.

Alex sighed and passed it to him, watching while he scrutinised it carefully. Finally, he gave it back. 'I am sorry Detective Inspector; we get a lot of Toms in here and...'

But Alex cut him off and stepped through the door. 'Goodbye.'

* * *

'Get anything?' Gene asked as she slid into the front seat. 'You certainly took your time.' He added grumpily.

'The man at the desk thought I was a prostitute.' Alex replied angrily.

Gene turned his head to look at her, staring carefully from her sheer purple shirt, to her tight black jeans. 'I've no idea why.'

Alex gave him a death-glare. 'Excuse me?'

'You don't exactly look like a typical police officer Bolls.' Gene remarked with a shrug.

Alex turned up the death-glare. 'So, we're all supposed to look like frumpy, dowdy, middle-aged nannies, are we?'

'Well you're certainly not supposed to look...'

'Shag-worthy?' Alex finished, quoting Ray with an ice cold tone.

'I wouldn't go that far Bolly, yer getting a bit ahead of yer station.'

Alex sighed. 'Well I do apologise for my appearance Gene, I had no idea it...distracted you.' She said, looking away from him. 'I got something by the way, a tape.' She added, annoyance still in her tone.

'Good.' Gene muttered, pulling the car away at top speed.

'You alright now Milly?' Alex asked.

'Yeah, Gene told me about the clouds and about how my Mummy is stood on them, waving to me.' Milly told her, looking up at the white clouds littering the September sky.

Alex turned to look at Gene, all traces of anger evaporated. 'You told her that?' She asked softly.

'Umm...yeah. I thought it might cheer her up if she believed...'

Alex looked away out of the window. 'Damn you, Gene Hunt.' She murmured.

Gene frowned. 'What have I done, now?'

She shook her head gently. 'Nothing...how can you be a total Tyrannosaurus Rex sometimes, but come up with things like that?'

Gene shrugged again. 'I say what needs saying, and I go where I'm needed. Like you said, she needs me. You were right for once, Bolls.' He said pointedly.

'I'm always right, Gene.' Alex replied.

He scoffed. 'Keep yer faith, Bolly.' He said as he swerved in to park in front of the station.

'_I go where I'm needed.' _The sentence stuck in Alex's head. _And what if I need you Gene? Then what?_

* * *

**What do you think?? Hope you liked it and please review! X =D**


	5. Evidence

**Hi! Once again, a massive thank you to everyone who's giving me these wonderful reviews, I'm glad you all like it so much! Here's the next chapter, hope you like it! Happy Reading! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes...what a shame...=D**

**Chapter 5 – Evidence**

* * *

'Right! Who's got information for me?' Gene prompted loudly as he, Alex and Milly entered CID.

Ray looked up from his desk and got up, walking over to them and stubbing out his cigarette as he went. 'Pete Crowley works for some bloke called Terry Marley down in the docks, he builds boats or something like that. Apparently this Terry bloke owns quite a few, he runs a business just building 'em and selling 'em on, Guv.'

Gene nodded. 'Right, good. Now, I want you and Christopher down there doing some surveillance, get a look at the place.' He stopped and looked around the office quickly. 'Talking of whom, where has the esteemed Christopher Skelton got to?'

'Oh, he's taken a late lunch break with Shaz.' Ray told him.

He rolled his eyes. 'Right, well go get him, and I don't care what he's doing, just get him down to those docks, now, mush!' He ordered, gesturing to Ray for him to leave.

'Yes, Guv.' Ray said, leaving the office and lighting another cigarette as he went.

Alex shoved her hands into her back pockets and looked at Gene. 'D'you want to see this tape then?'

'Yes, I do, Bolly. Hold on.' He leant out of the door, 'Viv!' He called, Viv appearing in a matter of seconds.

'Yes, Guv?' He asked, glancing at Milly who was looking up at him shyly.

'Could you take Milly for a few minutes? Show her how to play Pong.' He instructed, taking his suit jacket off. Alex stared at him in just his shirt and was dragged back to that moment in the toilets when he had been changing his shirt...

Viv looked down at Milly. 'Sure I can. Do you want to come with me?'

Milly looked up at Gene questionably. 'Will you be long?'

'Not long, Ok?'

Milly nodded. 'Ok!' She said, happily skipping off with Viv.

Gene turned back to Alex, who had discarded her white leather jacket and he allowed his eyes to quickly roam over her translucent shirt, where the outline of her black bra was just visible. He suddenly realised what he was doing and mentally chastised himself, dragging his eyes back to her face. Not that it helped much. Why did she have to look at him like that? Bloody insufferable, beautiful woman.

'Gene? Are you coming?' She asked for the second time, to Gene's embarrassment.

'Oh, yeah.' He replied, following her into the dark evidence room.

He perched on the edge of a table while Alex bent over and turned the TV and VCR on. 'Stop looking at my arse.' She said clearly as she pushed the tape in.

'Not much else to look at.' Gene retorted smugly.

Alex just sighed and pressed play, going to sit beside him on the table. They watched the uneventful screen for a few seconds before Gene grumbled. 'And what precisely am I supposed to be looking at, Bolls?'

'Just wait Gene, you'll see in a minute.' She said, holding up her hand to silence him. But as she dropped her hand it accidently brushed his thigh and he tensed, slightly shifting away from her as his breathing caught.

Alex noticed his reaction but had no time to dwell on it as what she had seen earlier appeared on the screen.

It was a shot of the stairs leading up to the floor Samantha had lived on and climbing the stairs was a man. The camera angle meant that they could only see the back of his head, but he appeared to have dark hair. He was quite tall and was wearing black. Black trousers and a black leather jacket.

A jacket big enough to hide a gun.

Also, in his gloved hands he held something neither Alex nor Gene could identify, but it was black, too. A balaclava, perhaps?

Just after that, the tape ended and they were both plunged into darkness. Alex stood up to turn the lights on but in the dark she tripped, falling straight into Gene's lap.

She heard the sudden gasp of air he took in as he grabbed her upper arms instinctively to stop her falling. She tried to ignore him, but it wasn't all that easy when he made it so obvious...

He confused her, in so many ways...

'Bolly, do you mind getting up off of me, now?' He asked gruffly.

She stood up quickly, thankful to the darkness for hiding the blush she could feel on her cheeks. She turned the lights on and took the tape out, putting back into its bag and placing it on a shelf.

'Well, that was interesting.' She said, trying to break the awkward silence. But unfortunately, she didn't see the double meaning in her words until they were out and she turned away, trying to stop her face from burning.

Gene's eyes widened as he took a deep breath, the blood flowing back to his head. 'I believe we may have a suspect whoever he is.'

Alex nodded. 'Yep. Right, um...Gene, what are we going to do with Milly?'

Gene looked at her, though avoiding her eyes. 'I was thinking she could...stay with you.'

Alex bit her lip and leant back against the doorway, forcing her fingers into her tight front pockets. 'Gene, I'm not sure that would be best, she's much more attached to you, plus my poky one bedroom flat isn't the most suitable place.'

Gene stared at her leant against the doorframe, looking at him.

_Why does she have to look so damn sexy?_ He thought before mentally reprimanding himself again.

'I dunno, Bolly. I wouldn't know how to look after her; I'm no good at all that little kid crap.'

Alex pouted thoughtfully, looking almost like him. 'Well...why don't I...come live with you, just until all this is sorted?' She suggested tentatively.

Gene's mind erupted into a silent battle of wills at her suggestion. He wasn't sure that her living with him was best, considering how he felt...he cut off mid-thought.

_Wait, I did not just think that. I don't have feelings for her. The Manc Lion doesn't do feelings. I just think she's sexy, that's all._

But a small nagging voice in the back of his mind told him otherwise. And he had to admit, he was lying to himself.

'Um...I...Ok, then. But you don't nag, or be a general fruitcake. Got it, Mrs Frilly-Knickers?'

Alex almost fainted. He'd...had he just agreed to let her live with him? For some unexplained reason she felt a small fluttering arise in her chest, but she attempted to smother it quickly.

_No, don't be stupid Alex, he doesn't actually want you to live with him, of course he doesn't! To him, you're just a posh pain in the arse. This is purely for Milly's sake. _

She nodded. 'Ok, well that's that sorted then. I think we should go get her some clothes from Lost and Found, then go get her from Viv, before she get's obsessed with that bloody Pong.'

Gene agreed and followed her out, still battling with that voice in the back of his mind...

* * *

'Gene!' Milly exclaimed, jumping up from the computer and running to hug him. Well, as best she could, seeing as the top of her head only just reached his waist. As always, both Gene and Alex were shocked by the affection she held for him.

Milly looked up at him. 'Viv's been teaching me Pong! It's really good, and he gave me more pink wafers!' She told him as he bent down to pick her up.

'That's good. Now, is it alright is you come live with me for a bit? And Bolly here will be there too.'

Milly nodded. 'Yeah! Do you have pink wafers?'

Gene smiled at her. 'Yes, I do. Right, do you want to come to Luigi's with us, and we'll get yer a drink and some pizza, Ok?'

'Ok!'

And with that they set off to Luigi's, Alex thinking about how nice her DCI looked when he smiled...

* * *

**There we go! Hope you liked it, reviews are very welcome! Please make my day; I'm feeling a little ill. X =D**


	6. Countdown

**Hi! Wow, again, a mahoo-sive thank-you to everyone who has reviewed, put me on story alert, favourite story and even some who have put me on favourite author! Thank you all very much for your support! Here's the next chapter, I hope you like it! And I'd just like to say two separate thanks, first, as always to BlondVelma! And also to my friend who's given me some help too; she doesn't have an account on here so...I'll call her...SmooGirl, there, that sounds cool. Tee hee. Happy Reading! X =D**

**Disclaimer - I don't own The BBC, Kudos, or Ashes to Ashes...boo hoo...=D**

**Chapter 6 – Countdown**

Chris, Ray and Shaz were already in Luigi's by the time Gene and Alex got there with Milly. Shaz and Chris were cuddled up in a corner and Ray was trying rather unsuccessfully to chat a blonde up.

Alex went and sat over at their usual table with Milly while Gene went to get 'a bottle of house rubbish' and a glass of orange juice.

But all of a sudden, as she sat down something caught her eye. But she didn't turn around to look at it.

Because it was Molly.

She was stood in the corner of the restaurant, the same as ever. Wearing her school uniform and stood still, never talking. Just watching.

'I know, if I turn to look at you, you'll vanish.' Alex whispered, just looking at her daughter from the corner of her eye. But there was something different this time, but Alex couldn't quite put her finger on it. What was it? What was different, what had changed? Then she realised. And almost cried.

She couldn't see her daughter's face.

She could see her uniform and her hands down by her sides. She could even see her hair disappearing over the back of her head into a ponytail. But her face was a blur. Like she couldn't quite see the features, just when she thought she could make out her eyes, they blurred out again. She couldn't remember her daughter's face.

Alex didn't even hear Gene offer her a glass of wine, or Milly pat her arm and ask what was wrong. She didn't even hear Gene threatening to slap her if she didn't snap out of it. All she could think was..._I can't forget, I can never forget her...not Molly, I can't forget my daughter. Never._

'Bolly!' Gene shouted, shaking her shoulders. Alex's eyes finally came back into focus to see Gene stood over her, a glass of wine in his hand.

'You're scaring me more and more by the day, Bolly. Here, get this down yer neck.' He said, thrusting the glass into her hand and sitting down as she took a large gulp.

'Um...sorry, I was...miles away.'

'Yeah, well, get back here Bolly. We need yer.' Gene told her, taking a gulp of wine. 'How's yer pizza, Milly?'

Milly looked up from her cheese and tomato pizza, Luigi had made a little smiley face out of tomatoes for her. 'Great! Thanks, Gene.' She said with a smile, tomato sauce all around her mouth.

Alex bit back a laugh. 'Come here Milly.' She said, picking up a napkin and leaning over Gene to wipe her mouth.

As she leant over him Gene caught the scent of her perfume, and the smell of her hair once more became familiar to him. It made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up, her, being so close...He swallowed and looked away, trying to distract himself by watching Chris try to light his finger with vodka whilst Ray handed him a lighter after having given up on the reluctant blonde.

Finally, she leant back and took another long sip of wine. 'There we are, all clean.'

Milly nodded. 'Yep! I'm done now...' Milly said with a small yawn as her eyelids began to look droopy.

Gene put down his now empty glass. 'Right, I'll go pay up.' He announced, getting up.

'Can I come?' Milly asked, reaching up.

'I'm only going to pay, s'not very exciting, Milly.'

Milly smiled sleepily. 'I know...'

Gene sighed and picked her up, walking over to the bar and taking his wallet out. Shaz saw that the Guv had gone and got up, sidling over to Alex and sitting beside her.

'So...' She started awkwardly.

Alex turned from looking over at Milly and Gene to face Shaz. 'Hi Shaz, how are you?'

'I'm fine...erm...you and the Guv, you were in a very..._comfortable_ position earlier, in the corridor. Sorry if I...interrupted anything.' She prompted, desperate for more information.

'No, no! You didn't, it was a misunderstanding, not what it looked like.' Alex said, all very quickly as she tried to back track Shaz's train of thought.

Shaz nodded slowly. 'Oh, alright then...well, if you're sure...' She said with a grin.

'I'm sure Shaz, I'll see you tomorrow.' She told her, getting up and pulling on her jacket.

'Ok, but for the record, you looked very cosy just now...'

Alex whipped her head back around to look at Shaz again. 'Trust me, there's nothing going on.' She said firmly, before walking over to where Gene was waiting with a half asleep Milly clinging to his shoulders again.

'Quite ready, Bolly Knickers?'

'Yeah, I've got some stuff from my flat here.' She said, motioning to a small suitcase she picked up quickly earlier.

'Right, well I don't want any of yer fancy French knickers lying about the place, understood?'

Alex rolled her eyes. 'You wish, now can we please get a move on?'

*

After a twenty minute drive through the darkened, rainy streets of London, Gene finally pulled the Quattro up outside a nice looking townhouse with a gravel drive and high, old fashioned windows.

'Nice.' Alex commented as they walked up the steps. Gene just grunted and shoved the key in the door, stepping through and kicking the post to the side.

It was quite tidy and decorated in neutral colours, if Alex was honest, it didn't look like he was here very much, which was probably true. He went to work early in the morning, and only left Luigi's extremely late at night. It was ten o'clock now, which was ridiculously early for them. But they had Milly to think about now.

'Right...erm...' To be truthful, Gene now had no idea what to do. He was trying to get over the image of him, stood holding a small child, in his hallway, with his DI. Thankfully, Alex saved the day.

'Here, I'll put her to bed. Which room is she having? I presume this is three bedrooms, from the size of it. And you call some other guys flash gits.'

'I don't boast about it, Bolly. And it's four, but that one's tiny. I use it for my computer.' Gene pointed out. 'Milly can have to one immediately on the left as you go up the stairs, you can have the one opposite. The one next to Milly's is mine. Stay out, Bolly.' He grunted, pulling his tie off and flinging it over the banister post.

'Trust me Gene; I have absolutely no desire to enter your bedroom, ever. So no worries.' She assured him. Though a very small, niggling part of her did want to see into the Manc Lion's abode, just out of curiosity...

'Good.' Gene said, handing Milly to her gently, as she was now fast asleep.

Alex took the little sleeping girl; she hardly weighed anything and took her upstairs, carefully resting her on the bed and pulling the covers up over her. She had taken her shoes and little jacket off so she was more comfortable.

She looked down at her peacefully sleeping, a small smile on her face. No-one would have ever guessed her mother had died just that morning. But then of course, Gene had helped with that.

Alex bit her lip. Gene. He was a puzzle, a total sexist, tyrannosaurus bastard at times, but then he was also, good and honest. He wasn't her type, never in a million of years, but here in the 1980s? She felt...attracted to him? No, that couldn't be it. Not ever, no way. At least...she didn't think so...

Still as confused as before she made her way out of the room, shutting the door silently on Milly's sleeping form.

She jumped when she saw Gene stood there, leant against the wall with his legs crossed at the ankles and arms across his chest.

'Jesus Christ, Gene.' She said, calming herself down. 'Don't jump out on me like that.'

Gene pouted. 'I didn't think I jumped on you, I'm just stood 'ere. S'my house.' He told her with a nonchalant shrug. He stood up straight and dropped his arms. 'D'you blank out again in there, Bolly? You were just stood, staring into space with that weird expression on yer face again.'

Alex decided to play dumb. 'What do you mean? I'm fine, I'm going to watch some T.V, I presume you've got one of them in this huge place.'

'S'not huge, Bolly. Just bigger than your place. There's a TV in the lounge.' He commented, following her down the stairs.

'Seriously though, Gene. Where'd you get the money to buy it? I know DCI pays a bit, but still.'

'A great Aunt I'd never met died about five years back, she left all her money to me. It just sat in my account in Manchester so when I moved down to London I thought I might as well do it in style.'

Alex nodded and sat down on the couch, curling her legs up under her while Gene sat on the other end, careful not to sit too close. It was only a two-seat couch however, so there was only a matter of centimetres between them.

'What d'ya want on?' Gene asked, picking up the remote from the wooden coffee table.

But Alex was pre-occupied. She was staring out of the sliding French doors to the moonlit garden behind. It was quite large, with gravel rather than patio and then a neat lawn with a few shrubs up the side. At the end there was a tall Weeping Willow tree, and under that a small bench.

It looked very...not very Gene Hunt.

Slowly, she got up and walked over to the sliding doors, peering out at the garden to get a better look. She could see now, a wide dark blue shed down the side of the house, and an unused vegetable patch near some of the shrubs. She didn't even notice when Gene walked up behind her, looking over her shoulder.

'What're you looking at, Bolly?' He asked quietly, his breath tickling her cheek and making her pulse increase rapidly, sending shivers down her spine.

'Your garden, it's...very nice...but, I can't...see you in it...' Alex said, too confused to care that she was telling Gene her actual thoughts rather than saying something else to hide them, as she so often did with him.

Gene frowned and stepped back, missing the scent off her skin instantly. 'I don't use it much...maybe in the summer sometimes, I sit with a whisky.' He told her apathetically, more interested in the news on the television.

Alex nodded and smiled. 'I can see that.' She agreed, turning and going to sit back on the sofa. Leaving Gene just as confused as her.

After about half an hour of watching the repeated news Gene finally sighed. 'Right, I'm going to bed, Bolls. See you in the morning. And please don't forget, mine is the one across from Milly's, keep out.'

Alex laughed. 'Are you going to keep reminding me in the hope that I'll do the exact opposite of what you say?'

Gene pouted and got up. 'You normally do.' He muttered, leaving the room.

Alex frowned as she heard his heavy footsteps go up the stairs. Had he meant...?...

She glanced over at the clock, it was five to eleven. She picked up the remote and flicked through the limited selection of channels until she settled on Countdown, they were re-running the program from earlier.

'Vowel, consonant, consonant, vowel...'

Alex looked at the letters, trying to form a word out of them. She and Molly had loved watching this at home, they had tried to outdo each other by getting longer words, and the winner could have extra pudding that night.

'I'm coming back to you, Molly.' She whispered.

Suddenly, the letters changed and the sound went funny, as though it had been zoned out and another sound replaced it. The same beeping sound from earlier, when she had blanked out in front of Gene and Milly, outside Milly's flat.

_BULLET – 36 HOURS_

Alex stared at the words, written in Countdown letters, before she saw the giant clock ticking away behind them. Only it wasn't counting down thirty seconds like on the show, but thirty-six hours. Then it hit her like a ton of bricks. She remembered the voices from earlier, they had said they were going to take the bullet out in forty-eight hours, that had been at eleven o'clock that morning, it was now, she glanced up at the clock again. Eleven o'clock.

She'd had twelve hours; she had thirty-six left. What day was it? Wednesday, that was it. So...at eleven o'clock, Friday morning, the bullet was going to be taken out. She was going home.

Alex took a sudden gasp of breath. _Home_. But what about, Chris, Ray and Shaz? What about CID, or the Samantha Jones case? What about Milly?

What about Gene?

But then Alex stopped her train of thought. She'd got too caught up here in the eighties, too involved. She wanted to go home, of course she did. None of this was real.

Was it?

Well, maybe she couldn't deny that _he_ was real, but maybe the rest of it wasn't. Yes, that was it. He was real, he had to be. He's held her hand; he was part of her timeline, part of her childhood. But she'd just created a dystopia around him, that was it!

Yes! All of this was based around Gene Hunt! Maybe...when she was about to be shot, she remembered someone holding her hand, blocking the view of the burning car, her parents inside. Maybe her unconscious mind had wanted that comfort again, and so had built her a dystopia around him whilst she was in a deep coma.

With a smile Alex turned the now normal TV off and made her way upstairs, slipping into her bedroom silently and pulling on the usual over-sized black shirt she used to sleep in. It was now that she wished she'd bought some pyjamas, a shirt that only just came to your mid thigh, probably wasn't the best thing to be sleeping in your DCI's house in.

She got into the large single bed and snuggled in under the thick navy blue covers, drifting off into an uneasy sleep.

**There we are! Like it? Hate it? Love it? Marmite!!! (sorry – mental moment, do forgive me). So sorry about the slight delay for this, part of it was me not getting on with it, and part is that the site won't let me upload. Anyway, reviews are as welcome as a good whisky is to Gene and a bottle of red wine is to Alex!!! So review, please??? Thanks for reading! X =D**


	7. Morning Light

**Hiya, wow, (again) thank you so much for all the lovely reviews for the last chapter, and this story do far! You guys are awesome! Thanks you all so much, I'm glad you like it! Here's the next chapter, hope you enjoy it. Happy Reading! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes, or (gasp) Gene Hunt, but I do own this story! (Performs little happy dance). =D**

**Chapter 7 – Morning Light**

Alex's eyes popped wide open, scared and alert. She rolled over and looked at the electronic clock on the bedside table and groaned when she saw that it was just after two in the morning.

She'd been running, it had been white, everything had been white. White walls, floors and ceilings. All glaringly, blindingly, _white_. Then she had burst into a room, a hospital room. Though unnaturally clean. In the bed, was her. In 2008, with bandages around her gunshot head.

But suddenly the scene had changed, to 1981. But it was still the same, she was still in the hospital bed, only with permed hair, but still a gunshot wound to her head. Then she had become aware of another presence in the room. Gene Hunt.

Alex groaned as the dream came flooding back to her, why had Gene been in the room? Why wasn't Molly anywhere in her dream? Molly was _always_ in her dream, always. Where was she?

She wiped her eyes and swung her legs out of bed, getting out. She walked slowly over to the door and opened it ajar, peering out. The hallway outside was silent, the only light coming from the moon, filtering down from the skylight on the stairs. She slipped out and padded down to the bathroom, shutting the door behind her once in there.

The bathroom was white tiled, with tiled floors too. They walls felt cool on her hands as she made her way to the toilet, looking at the large bathtub and shower, trying to keep her mind of the subject of Gene inside them...

She looked up at her reflection as she was washing her hands, again, the light coming in from the moonlight through the window.

Her hair was messy and tangled, her mascara smudged smokily under her eyelashes; she'd forgotten to remove it before going to bed. She sighed and tuned the tap off, drying her hands on the towel and leaving the bathroom.

Suddenly, she felt a sudden wave of dizziness as she looked down the wide, carpeted hallway. There were too many doors, they all blurred sideways as she brought a hand to her head, swaying a little.

'I need to go back to bed...' She moaned quietly to herself, opening the door and walking in, collapsing onto the bed without bothering to get under the covers and falling asleep almost instantly.

*

Gene's eyes slowly opened groggily as something woke him up, something he couldn't work out. He'd heard something, he was sure of that but he'd felt something too...his bed go down...as if someone had collapsed onto it. Milly?

He bit his lip, maybe she'd had a nightmare...he wondered whether or not he should roll over and look, but what if she was awake? He had no idea what he would say, would to do. He wasn't good with little kids; he never knew what to say. Though this one seemed to have become very attached to him. Poor kid, losing her mother like that.

Sighing, Gene rolled over, careful not to knock her. But gasped at what he saw.

Lying on the other side of his massive bed, on top of the covers...was his DI.

She was strewn with her head to the side, facing him with a sleepy, sexy smile on her face. But his thoughts didn't remain on her sleeping face long; as his eyes travelled downwards his pulse-rate increased as he saw the black shirt she was wearing only passed the top of her thigh. The rest of her long legs were exposed, stretching down to where they crossed at the ankle.

He tried to control his breathing, it wouldn't do for her to be woken by his heavy, erratic breathing and see him sat there, staring at her. No, it wouldn't do at all. But she'd never looked so sexy...or beautiful.

He wondered what to do as he stared determinedly at a curl that had fallen across her forehead, refusing to let his eyes stroll any further down her body.

Should he move her? Carry her to her own bed? But it would be just his luck for her to wake up, be embarrassed and come out with some smart arsed comment. He could leave her, explain that she'd got confused in the dark; he presumed that was the case, considering she was totally out of it. Yes, he would do that. The Gene Genie could be sympathetic...when he wanted too.

With that decision in mind Gene lay back down, but never managed to completely get back to sleep, he was too aware of Alex, trying to make sure he didn't roll over onto her. Instead he drifted in and out of sleep, all the time painfully aware of the sleeping woman next to him. His Bolly-Knickers...

*

Alex was aware of the weak sunlight on her face, but couldn't force herself to be compelled to open her eyes just yet. The warmth was nice...

But when she did eventually open them, she wished she hadn't.

The walls were _white_, not light blue. The wallpapered wall behind her head was a dark red, and the dark wooden wardrobe in the corner was not the same as the one in her room; it was larger. She looked quickly around. The whole _room_ was larger.

Slowly, she turned her head to look at the other side of the bed. And there, sure enough, was a man. Gene Hunt. Her DCI. Of course. He was laid on his side, propped up on one elbow as he watched her patiently, a mocking smirk upon his face.

Alex gawped at him dumbfounded as she opened her mouth, closed it, and then opened it again. She didn't know what to say. She sat up in a daze and pushed her hair out of the way, trying to organise the tangled web of thoughts cluttering her head.

'Bloody hell, yer speechless, Bolly.' Gene remarked, getting out of the bed and looking down on her.

She looked up at him, and swiftly averted her eyes. He slept only in black pyjama bottoms, no shirt. She didn't want a repeat of the emotions and thoughts she'd experienced in the men's toilets.

Keeping her eyes fixed firmly on his face, not that it helped much when he was wearing that sexy pout, she asked, 'how...what...how did I get here?'

Gene sighed. 'I got lonely and decided ter carry yer in 'ere, Bolly. What d'you think?'

Alex bit her lip and Gene looked away, it was almost as bad as when she licked them...shit, that had done it...

He shifted uncomfortably and tried to turn away, unsuccessfully.

'What's wrong, Gene?'

He looked back at her. It didn't improve things.

'You, sat in my bed, wearing that, with bed hair and make-up smudged under yer eyes...Gives me the horn.'

Alex rolled her eyes and got out, standing across from him with her hands on her hips. 'Well, I'm sorry, about last night, getting confused...um...I'm gonna go see if Milly's up...and get dressed.' She told him, leaving the room as quickly as possible.

Gene groaned and sank down onto the bed, it was taking everything he had not to slap himself on the forehead; hard.

_You absolute arsehole Gene, you idiot. Since when did you become such a first class twit?_

*

Alex and Gene entered CID, Milly in tow. Neither of them mentioned anything about the bedroom mix up, neither were they planning to.

'Raymoundo! Christopher! Do you have information for me?' Gene said loudly as they came over.

'Err...yes, Guv. We saw Crowley renovating a boat, well, there were quite a few. This one was called The Blacksmith; there was a team of men, loads of 'em. Some were Polish, I think.' Chris reported, taking a big bite of his chocolate bar.

Gene nodded once. 'Right, 'cause we've got an unidentified suspect, only saw his back. He was going up to Samantha Jones' floor, wearing all black, just around ten minutes before the time of death. Tall git, black hair, from what we could tell.'

Ray nudged Chris with his elbow. 'Hey, he sounds a bit like this Terry Marley bloke, he's tall with black hair, Guv.'

Gene pouted thoughtfully. 'Right, I think I should have a word with this Terry Marley bloke, he keeps cropping up.'

Alex frowned. 'I don't think her ex-husbands boss would have any reason to kill her, Guv.'

Gene turned and looked at Alex appraisingly. 'Miss bloody Marple, would you care to tell us who's in charge around here?'

'You, but-'

'No buts.' Gene turned back around. 'Do you mind if Shaz looks after Milly for a bit, it looks like I'm taking this mouthy tart with me. We won't be long.'

Shaz came up with a wide smile on her face. 'Course I can! Hiya Milly, how are you?'

Milly looked up at Shaz and waved, feeling a little more confident today. 'Fine, have you got any pink wafers?'

Shaz laughed and took her hand. 'A few, over here. I can show you this great walkman Chris gave to me too...'

Alex watched as the little girl happily went off with Shaz before turning back to the three men.

'Ray, Chris, could you please try talk to some of Samantha's neighbours, find out if they heard anything suspicious. Or even saw someone entering the flat.' She ordered, giving them a smile.

'Bolly! Who. Is. In. Charge?!' Gene shouted, stabbing out his cigarette with surprising force.

Alex sighed. 'You, and you have serious anger management issues.'

He looked at her like she was insane. 'Bolly, I don't even know what the hell that shit is, so I can't have issues with it, can I? Now, you, me, down to the docks, mush!'

Alex turned and walked out, Gene banging the door as he followed behind her.

'Tell me the truth Gene, why are we going to see this Marley bloke?' Alex asked once they were in the Quattro, speeding through the still damp streets of London.

Gene sighed heavily and glanced at her. 'There was a bloke called Terence Marley back on my patch in Manchester, I nicked him a few times for theft, nothing big. He got banged up for a few years; he'd be out by now. I wanna see if it's him.' Gene told her, flinging the Quattro around a corner.

'And you couldn't have said this back there?' Alex asked incredulously.

'No. Reputation to uphold.' Gene said as the Quattro stopped suddenly and he got out.

'Fine. Let's go.'

As they walked through the shipyard to a small mobile that they guessed contained Terry Marley, a few of the workers gave Alex a wolf whistle, causing both her and Gene to throw them filthy looks.

'Terry Marley! Are you in there? Doesn't matter, because I'm coming in!' Gene called, forcing his way inside the poky office.

Behind the desk sat Terry Marley. His face was gaunt and bony, as though the flesh was stretched tight over his cheekbones. His scraggly black hair was pulled back into a low ponytail and his surveyed them with dull green eyes, which Alex thought may once have been bright.

'And who are you?' He said in a rough accent.

Gene pulled out his warrant card. 'Gene Hunt.' He looked around. 'You employ Polish here?'

Terry stood up, pulling awkwardly at his tie. 'Yeah...they've all got papers and stuff, if that's what your 'ere for.' He told them, walking around and eyeing Alex.

'They employ women in the met now then?' He turned back to Gene. 'Very nice, tasty. Bet she keeps you occupied.'

A low hiss escaped Alex's lips as she glared coldly at him. '_She_ has name. DI Alex Drake. And I do _not_; keep DCI Hunt, occupied, as you so tastefully put it. There's been a murder, Mr Marley, the ex-wife of one of your employees. Pete Crowley, what's he like?'

Terry looked at Alex and raised his eyebrows. 'Brains, too. Very nice...' He took a step towards her and Gene threw his arm out viciously, holding him back.

'Just answer her question.' He ordered in a low voice.

'Pete Crowley, good worker. Comes in on time, works well. Nothing more to say.' He said, his eyes still on Alex as she kept eye contact, giving him a cold, hard stare.

'Were you aware he had an ex-wife, and a daughter?' Gene asked, looking at him just as harshly as Alex.

He sighed and turned to Gene again. 'Yes, it's on the records. Now, if you haven't actually got anything else to say to me, I'd like you to leave.' He looked at Alex with a creepy smile; it didn't suit his haggard appearance. 'Unless DI Drake would like to stay of course...'

Alex stuck her chin out confidently and walked out the door, her mouth set into a straight line, Gene followed shortly after.

'Scum.' He muttered as they made their way back to the Quattro.

'Bastard.' Alex supplemented as she got in, slamming the car door.

'Bloody hell, Bolls. Don't take it out on the Quattro, it's not the car's fault he took a shine to yer.'

Alex's head whipped around to face him; she stared at him, seething. 'He did _not_ 'take a shine to me'. _He_ is a womanizing bastard, who would gladly monopolise any woman who walked through his door. He is just the sort of scum I enjoy locking up, arsehole.'

'Good god Bolly, calm down. You'll not have to talk to him again if we have any luck, come on.'

Alex sighed. 'You're right, sorry. It's not your fault. I think we should go back and see what Ray and Chris have found out.'

Gene nodded. 'Yep. Hold on tight.' He replied as the Quattro screeched away from the curb.

**There we go, hope you like it! Please review, reviews mean love! And I mean all reviews, because I love criticism too, as long as it's constructive! Thanks for reading! X =D**


	8. Get Me My Search Warrant

**Hey! Thanks for the reviews last chapter, you guys can all have unlimited cookies! Tee hee, here's the next chapter! Happy Reading! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes, wish I did, I'd be super cool, haha. X =D**

**Chapter 8 – Get Me My Search Warrant**

* * *

'Well? Was it him?' Alex asked.

'No. Recognised the bugger though, just can't remember where from.' Gene muttered as he threw the car around another corner.

Alex bit her lip, pausing before saying what she was about to say. 'Gene, about last night...I'm sorry, I got lost, I should have been paying more attention...'

'Don't worry about it, Bolly.' Gene muttered as they pulled up outside the station and walked inside.

'Guv!' Chris greeted them.

'Ah, Christopher, what have you got fer me?'

'Well, we spoke to some of the neighbours, but that came out zero. Most of 'em are either on drugs or too scared to speak to us. I think most of 'em have got previous.'

Gene sighed. 'So what are you trying to tell me?'

Chris grinned, 'I'm getting to that. But we did look this Terry Marley up again, this time under Terence Marley and we got results.'

'Yeah, of course you did you div, there's a different Terry Marley who I nicked for small time theft.'

'No, as in this Terry Marley, there's a picture and everything. He's been in before.'

'Get ter the point Christopher, what was he in fer?'

'Cocaine possession. But they couldn't prove it over at Fenchurch East, they let him go.'

Alex scoffed. 'They arrested someone for drugs _possession_, but they didn't have anything to put on him?'

Gene frowned at Alex. 'It was probably circumstantial evidence, either way; we're checking him out tonight. Raymoundo! Get me my search warrant!' He ordered, Ray appearing minutes later with a large baseball bat.

Alex sighed. 'You are joking, right?'

'No I am not, Bolly. We're going down to the docks, tonight. So I think you should change into something more suitable. Or if you like, something less suitable, we could use you as a distraction...'

'I don't think so.' Alex snapped, stalking away from him to where Milly was sat with Shaz. 'Hi Milly, how are you doing?'

Milly looked up at Alex. 'Great! Shaz bought me some magazines; we're looking at them now!' She told her, pointing to the Teletubbies magazine in front of her.

Alex smiled. 'Oh thanks Shaz, how much do I owe you?'

'Nah, its fine Ma'am, my pleasure. So...you and the Guv were gone a long time, it's almost eleven o'clock now. Are you sure you went straight to the docks and back?' She asked with a smile.

'Yes, Shaz! I've told you, there is nothing going on with me and-'

'Bolly-Knickers! In here, now. I want a word.'

Alex sighed and turned to face Gene. 'Coming.'

Gene shut the door behind Alex and smiled slightly as she slipped past him. 'What was that about, Bolly?'

'What was what about?'

Gene nodded towards Shaz. 'What Shaz was saying, what was it all about.'

_Shit_. 'Um...she just...had this crazy idea, ridiculous thought...'

Gene raised his eyebrows. 'What idea?'

Alex shook her head. 'It's nothing important, really Gene. Just forget it.'

Gene stepped around his desk to stand in front of her. 'No, I won't. Tell me. As your DCI I order you to tell me what Shaz was talking about?'

Alex swallowed, he was stood very close...it was almost like in the corridor yesterday...she wondered what it would be like, if he suddenly shoved her against the wall and kissed her...

_Meh! What am I thinking?!_ She shook the thought from her head and returned her concentration to answering him.

'Um...Shaz had this ridiculous idea...that...um...there was something going on with...you and me...' She forced out, instantly blushing.

Gene pouted and looked at her. Shaz thought that? Interesting...

He looked down, shoving his hands in his pockets before looking back up at her again. God, had he stood that close?

'And what...what do you think about that idea, Bolly?' He asked in a low voice, looking at her intently.

Alex's eyes widened, was he suggesting...? 'Erm...well...'

But she never got to finish her sentence as she swayed and fell backwards, her head crashing into the floor. And then everything went black.

* * *

She was alone, wandering down a dark corridor. Why was it so dark? She kept walking through; she was searching for something, but what?

Suddenly, a light came on in the corridor up ahead and she could see a girl stood there, but who was she?

As Alex drew closer she could see that she was wearing a green school skirt, but when she tried to look at the blazer to see what school she was from, it blurred out of focus. She couldn't see the substance. It was like she knew it was there, but she couldn't see it.

Her face, also, was blurred. She couldn't see her face. She couldn't make out the features on her face.

'Who are you?' Alex whispered.

'Have you forgotten me, Mum? Can't you remember me? It's me, Molly. You've got 24 hours, Mum. They're taking the bullet out in 24 hours, are you coming home to me, Mum?'

But then the girl started to fade into the distance, Alex ran but she couldn't reach her. 'Molly! No, Molly! Molly!'

* * *

She woke up screaming her daughter's name, to see Gene leant over her, she was laid on the cool floor of his office.

'Bloody hell Bolls, you might have been out cold for a few minutes, but I'm pretty sure I don't look like your daughter.'

Alex sat up and looked at Gene with wide eyes. 'I don't know...I can't remember...Oh God, Gene, I can't remember what she looks like!'

Gene watched as she sobbed, tears coming from her wide caramel eyes. What was he supposed to do?

_Put your arm around her, you idiot. _

_Yeah sure, that'll go down well. _

Instead he shifted to sit next to her, back against the wall. 'Um...you'll remember Bolls, in time. You will.' He told her, not even knowing what he was talking about.

Alex turned to look at him, wiping her eyes. 'What if I don't Gene? What if I get back home this time tomorrow and can't remember who she is?'

Gene frowned. 'You're not going home tomorrow Bolly; we're in the middle of a case.' _I don't want you to go yet..._ 'What about Milly, hm?'

'Gene! Its Milly I'm thinking of, what if I can't remember her? My own daughter, and I can't even remember her face!'

'Alex, your daughter's name is _Molly_. Milly is outside with Shaz.'

Alex's mouth dropped open. 'I...I got her name wrong...oh my God...I can't remember her face, and I got her name wrong!' She stopped and bit her lip, staring at him with wide eyes. 'Gene, what am I going to do?' She asked quietly.

Gene sighed. 'First of all, you're going to stop crying, because it doesn't help. And second, you need to go get changed.' He said as he got up, brushing his trousers off.

Alex got up and ran her fingers through her hair. 'What's wrong with this?' She asked, gesturing to her jeans and shirt.

Gene looked her up and down. _Nothing_. 'You need flat shoes, for a start Bolly, if we're going to be creeping around Marley.'

'Oh, yeah. Ok, well, can I have the keys then?'

'No way, for a start, you are never driving my Quattro again and second, I won't let you drive in this state.'

'What state?'

'I think you're forgetting everything Bolly, you just fainted. Remember?'

Alex nodded. 'Ok, what about Milly while we're raiding wherever it is?'

Gene looked over to where Shaz was laughing as Milly picked a pink wafer to pieces. 'Shaz could look after her.'

'Again?'

Gene pouted. 'I thought children liked that, consistency.' He replied with a shrug.

Alex smiled. 'You've been listening.' She pointed out.

'Don't get used to it.'

Alex rolled her eyes, 'right, are we going?'

Gene nodded and turned to address the rest of the team. 'Right, Drakey here is going to get changed because she's dressed like a tart again, then we'll be heading down to the docks to wait for our opportunity. Shaz, are you alright to watch Milly?'

Shaz looked up. 'Oh, yeah sure.'

But Milly stuck out her bottom lip and looked sulkily at Gene. 'Why can't I come?'

Gene crouched down to her height and gave her a sort of smile. 'Milly, it's very dangerous, what we're going to do, so I need you to stay here. Then, I tell yer what, we'll go to the cinema afterwards, that sound good to you?'

Milly's grumpy face broke into a grin and her eyes lit up. 'Ok! Bye, Gene! Bye, Alex!' She said happily, returning to her magazines.

Gene stood up and followed Alex out of the station, trying not to think about having to spend an entire hour and a half in a dark cinema with his DI.

'Yer unusually silent Bolly-Kecks, what yer thinking?' He asked as they got into the Quattro.

Alex shrugged. 'Not much...how do you do it?'

'Do what?' Gene inquired as they screeched around the corners again.

'You've got her wrapped around your little finger.' Alex told him, they both knew she was talking about Milly.

Gene frowned. 'I thought it was the other way round, if yer ask me. She's got me wrapped around _her_ little finger.'

Alex smiled. 'Maybe it's a bit of both.' She agreed softly as they swung into Gene's driveway.

'Right Bolls, out yer get. You've got ten minutes, go.' He told her, chucking his house keys to her. But when she got out, he followed her.

'Where are you going?'

'Second thoughts, I don't want yer collapsing in there and me having to come find yer.'

Alex sighed and opened the door. 'Fine, but you're not coming up with me.' She retorted cheekily, making her way upstairs while Gene stood waiting in the hallway.

'I wouldn't want ter.' He called up, but she'd already disappeared into her room.

Gene waited for a few minutes, but then, just as he started to get impatient, he heard a loud thump come from upstairs.

'Bolly!' He shouted, running up the stairs and bursting into her room, just in time to see her slip and blue long sleeved over her head.

'Gene!' She yelled, 'what are you doing in here?!'

Gene instantly backed out, but she followed him out, now fully dressed. 'God, I didn't faint. The wardrobe door just banged shut a little louder than usual, bloody hell!'

Gene grimaced and rubbed the back of his neck nervously. 'Sorry Bolly, I just didn't want yer passing out on me again.'

Alex sighed. 'Well you could have knocked, you're lucky I was only putting my top on. If you'd have seen anything else, you'd have a black eye by now!' She retorted.

'Bolly, stop yelling at me and get yer bony arse down those stairs and into the Quattro, before I'm forced to drag yer there.'

'Fine! Just have a little more common sense next time!'

'Me? Common sense, speak for yer-self! Listen, it's not like I haven't already seen yer without yer top.'

Alex turned and stared at him. 'When was that?!'

'Edge-hampton, vault. You and yer fancy knickers got us locked in there. Ringing any bells?'

'Oh...' Alex pouted. 'Yeah...well...it was dark.' She muttered, getting into the Quattro.

Gene shook his head. 'Women...'

* * *

**Ok, I know there wasn't a lot of Galex in there, some, but not loads. But I promise, cross my heart, there will be a lot in the next chapter! Please review and tell me what you thought though! Cookies are given! X =D**


	9. Discoveries

**Hi! Sorry it's been a few days, busy times! But thanks for all the reviews everyone, each one brings a grin to my face, so please keep them coming! (hint, hint.) Also, quick mention to my friend, I'll call her SmooGirl for the help, and also to BlondVelma as always! Here's the next chapter, hope you like it! Happy Reading! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes, but I'd like to see this chapter acted out...could prove amusing, lol. X =D**

**Chapter 9 – Discoveries**

* * *

It was already quite dark when Gene parked up a few streets away from the docks. Although it was only seven o'clock, most of the darkness was formed from the black stormy clouds overhead, blocking out what sunlight remained.

'Right team, do we know the plan?' Gene asked, checking his revolver with a grimace on his face.

'Yes, Guv. Me and Ray tail Marley, while you and Drake check out the offices over on Gordon Street.'

Gene nodded once, shoving the revolver into his pocket. 'Good. Let's go. Bolly, no wandering off. We don't want Marley getting his hands on yer arse, seems he likes bony.'

Alex did a strange combination of rolling her eyes, and shuddering at the memory of the last time she had met Terry Marley. 'Shut up. Let's go.'

'I just said that, Bolls. Christopher, Raymoundo! Go!'

Alex watched Chris and Ray scuttled off towards the docks, Ray shoving his radio into his pocket. They had to radio Gene and Alex if Terry Marley began to head their way.

* * *

The offices on Gordon Street consisted of a grimy, three floored brick building with murky windows and poor security. It was here that Terry Marley ran his ship selling business.

It didn't take long for Gene to kick the door in, the locks were ancient and inefficient, even Milly could have probably knocked it down, if she concentrated.

Once in, they crept down the darkened corridors, making little noise on the grey linoleum floor. Eventually, Alex stopped in front of a door and beckoned to Gene.

'Guv, in here.' She whispered as he made his way over.

'How d'you know?'

Alex sighed and pointed to the sign that resided on the wooden door. _Terence Marley_

'Oh.' Gene said. 'Well, in you go Bolly Knickers.' He told her, putting a hand on her backside and gently pushing her into the office.

'Gene! Get your hand off of my arse!' Alex ordered, her voice, quite a bit louder than a whisper ringing through the still, silent air.

'Shh!' Gene hushed, quickly removing his hand. 'I thought I had your back there, you can't tell-'

'Oh, shut up.' Alex snapped, turning on her torch and shining it around the room, taking in the grotty filing cabinets and faded desk. 'Just look around.'

As he turned to shuffle some of the many papers on Terry's desk, Gene thought he heard Alex mutter something like. 'If you think my arse is so bony, then why do you look at it so much?' This caused the corner of his mouth to twitch upwards just a little as he pulled open the top drawer of the desk.

* * *

They searched for a little longer, rifling through drawers and disturbing dusty papers, both of them coming up with nothing. But then, just as Alex was beginning to tire of straining her eyes in the near darkness, the torch not being that bright, she finally found something in a drawer.

'Gene, look at this.' She whispered, looking through the pages of the small, leather bound book she had found.

'What is it?'

'A diary. Well, more like a planner, I think. But look.' She said, pointing to the name scrawled on the front page.

'Bloody hell, this is Pete Crowley's!' Gene exclaimed, though still keeping his voice hushed.

'Mm-hm. So what's his boss doing with it?' She asked rhetorically, tapping it in her hand. But as she shut it, a piece of paper fell out, and drifted slowly to the floor, like a feather. Alex stooped down to retrieve it.

'Bleedin' Christ on a bike, Bolly. If you don't want me to look at it, then don't shove it right in front of my face.'

She straightened up with an angered huff, giving him a hard stare before looking down at the small piece of paper.

'_Smith _and _Lathbeck_. Who are they?' Alex asked, handing it over to him and watching curiously as he examined the note.

_Smith. Lathbeck._

'Sound like surnames to me, Bolly. We'll have a look in the morning.' He told her, placing both the mysterious note and the diary carefully into his pocket. However, as he did so, a crackle came from his radio, followed by Ray's voice.

'Guv, hide! Marley's heading for the office! Thirty seconds, max!'

Alex's eyes widened as she froze to the spot, looking around anxiously at the door as the sound of approaching footsteps grew ever nearer. Gene, managing to keep his composure, grabbed hold of her wrist, quickly pulling her into a nearby cupboard and just shutting the door in time before the lights flickered on and they heard Terry Marley enter the room.

* * *

Gene tried to peer through the crack, but he couldn't see anything. He was trying to stubbornly keep his mind off of how his DI's body was pressed up against his in a way that could only be described as inappropriate.

_Good lord, take me now. I've had the vault; you did you really have to go one step further? What have I done to deserve being squashed into a cupboard, up against a posh mouth tart with the common sense of a grain weevil? Bloody insufferable, sexy woman. _

Alex closed her eyes and attempted deep breathing, but it didn't work. She just couldn't drag her mind away from the idea the weight of Gene's body was pushing her up against the side of a cupboard with her right leg wrapped awkwardly around his in an extremely undignified manner.

_If this is a dystopia, why am I stuck in a cupboard, pressed up against Gene Hunt? My strangely sexy boss and the tyrannosaurus of Fenchurch East. Surely my mind would never come up with something like this...would it? It has to be real...it wouldn't feel this real..._

And sure enough, Alex couldn't deny the strange fluttering in her stomach as Gene tried to adjust himself, only to end up with his face even closer to hers and no visible way of changing that position.

* * *

Gene inwardly recited every curse and swear word he knew of – the list was quite extensive. If she had previously had any doubt about his reaction when she had fell onto his lap in the dark evidence room, she definitely didn't now.

_Shit and double bleeding shit. Couldn't Marley have had bigger cupboards?! She must think I'm a right tosser..._

And it didn't help that the damn woman was breathing so heavily either. Was she even aware of her chest pushed up against his? Heaving at every deep breath she took, or even aware of his face, inches from her, his nose inhaling her intoxicating perfume...

* * *

All of a sudden they heard Marley begin to open drawers, muttering. 'Where is it? Where is it?'

Alex's eyes popped open to see Gene's face not far at all from hers, his sultry gaze piercing her eyes even through the pitch blackness.

'The diary.' She mouthed. Gene gave her a small nod in reply, his expression uncomfortable. She must have noticed, surely.

'Shit!' Marley suddenly shouted out, flicking out the lights and slamming the door violently as he left the room.

Gene slowly edged the cupboard door open and they stumbled out. Both extremely glad of their dark surroundings that meant they didn't have to hide their expressions.

Why hadn't she said anything, was she disgusted? Probably...definitely...

Alex silently exhaled, trying to calm her pulse rate and arrange the jumbled mess of thoughts swirling her head. But she couldn't comprehend the confusion, embarrassment and most of all..._longing_, that she felt.

Because a certain discovery scared her, scared her very much. And it wasn't the diary they had found a few minutes before. No, this was a discovery altogether more shocking, and more unexpected.

Back there, in the cupboard...his body shoved against hers...her face inches from his...she had _really_ wanted him to kiss her.

* * *

'What happened? You two divs were supposed ter be keeping an eye on him!' Gene yelled once they had all met back at the Quattro, Chris and Ray cowering under his angry glare.

'Sorry, Guv. I think he realised we were following 'im and doubled back.' Chris told him nervously, knowing Gene's temper well. But also noticing that something else must have happened to make him angry, or to result in him adding to his anger.

'Whatever. Now you two useless dips get in the back. Me and Bolls here have a film to see.'

Alex frowned, her pulse annoyingly racing once more. Was he asking her out? No...couldn't be. Probably something else, something she had forgotten, in light of recent, strange events. The last few minutes to her seemed unreal. 'What?' She finally asked.

'I promised Milly we'd take her to the cinema, remember?'

'Oh, yeah.' Alex agreed, faintly remembering him saying that to the little girl as the Quattro sped back to Fenchurch East station, the memories of that dark cupboard still playing in her head, over and over again. As they were in Gene's.

* * *

**So...what do you think? Enough Galex activity??? Hope you liked that, please review! Next chapter, the cinema trip! Hit the little review button, you know you want to! You get cookies! X =D**

* * *


	10. Phone Home

****

Hi, thanks again for the reviews and story alert subscriptions, you're all so supporting, so thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying reading this as much as I love writing it! Here's chapter 10, happy reading and please keep those lovely reviews coming! X =D

**P.S – I know that E.T came out in 1982, but I'm just saying for this stories sake that it came out late 1981. =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes, but I do own Milly, tee hee. =D**

**Chapter 10 – Phone Home**

* * *

'Why don't you ask, Milly?' Alex encouraged as she nudged her towards the ticket counter.

'Ok, what are we seeing again?'

'E.T.' Alex told her, handing her the money and walking behind her as Milly approached the woman selling the tickets.

'What are we seeing that for anyway?' Gene asked.

'Shut up, Gene. It's the only film she can see; all the others are too old for her.' Alex replied and hushed him so that Milly could speak.

'Um...can we have three tickets for E.T, please?' Milly said in a small voice, reaching up to put the money on the counter.

The woman gave Milly a broad smile. 'Of course you can, sweetie.' She said, handing Milly three tickets and looking up at Gene and Alex. 'Aw, what a lovely daughter, you must be very proud.'

'Oh no! She's not ours.' Gene said hurriedly, quickly correcting her with an alarmed expression.

Alex shook her head hastily, too. 'No, we're not even...together, or anything...'

'Oh, ok.' She said, giving them both a strange look as they walked off, Milly in tow.

'Bloody hell, why on earth would I be married to you?' Gene muttered as they entered the dark cinema.

'I was just thinking the exact same thing.' Alex whispered back as she felt Gene's firm grasp on her elbow. 'What are you doing, Gene?'

'Making sure you don't fall over, it'd be typical you, I'm fed up of catching yer.' He replied cuttingly just as they reached their seats.

Alex rolled her eyes, though she knew no-one could see and sat down, Gene next to her and Milly next to Gene on the end.

'Milly, did you get change from those tickets?' Alex asked while the advertisements rolled before them.

'Um...don't _think_ so.' Milly replied vaguely.

Alex chuckled silently. 'Ok, you can keep it.' She told the little girl, sitting back in her seat and looking at the screen as the film began to roll.

* * *

It was amazing, the dramatic difference between cinema in 1981 and 2008. She hadn't known the special effects were really that...well, _awful. _She remembered watching E.T with Molly on Christmas day once, she had laughed at the bad CGI but they had also cried at the end, when the poor little alien died.

During the start of the film, Alex found herself unable to concentrate completely on the storyline; she seemed to be electrically aware of Gene's hand on the armrest, very close to her own. She wondered, how would it feel? Just to reach out and hold it...but she didn't, of course not. He didn't want to be with her, not like that; otherwise he wouldn't have been so quick to correct that woman, would he?

But maybe, just maybe, a little voice whispered, he was confused, too. Let's face it; the Manc Lion didn't exactly do proper relationships, the failure of his marriage proved that. No, he was too proud to do anything but have a quick fling and never see the woman again, whoever she would be. And she didn't want that, she wasn't sure what she _did_ want. But she knew that she didn't want a quick one-night stand with Gene bloody Hunt.

She sighed as her eyelids began to droop, the film wearing on, she suddenly felt very tired, exhausted, almost.

The last words she heard were, _'E.T, phone home.' _Before her eyes closed completely and sleep overtook her, blocking out the sound and picture of the movie and allowing her to rest as her head lolled to one side.

* * *

Gene glanced to his right to see Milly, enraptured, her eyes wide as she watched the quirky alien on the large screen. He wasn't really following the film himself, but it was peaceful in the cinema, letting him sit and not have to think about anything, his DI, for example. _Alex. _The puzzle.

But then, just as he was quickly attempting to stop himself thinking about the cupboard incident, he felt something drop onto his shoulder and stay there.

His head whipped round to the left and his eyes grew wide as he saw Alex's head there, resting on his shoulder. She'd fallen asleep on _his_ shoulder. Asleep. On him.

He stared at her for a moment, her closed eyes, peaceful expression and mouth formed in the same small sleepy smile she had worn when she'd been asleep on his bed, accidently. The moving pace of the film lit her face up in different ways, and he watched for a while as the light played on her sleeping face.

What should he do? Just leave her? Or wake her up, make some snide remark? No, he would have to leave her, let her sleep. Besides, he just couldn't ignore the warmth he felt, her head on his shoulder, asleep.

* * *

The film ended, much to Milly's disappointment, of course, she had loved it.

'Gene! That was great, can we watch it again?' She asked excitedly as the lights came on and people began to slowly filter out of the cinema.

Gene gave her a small smile. 'No, not tonight, it's late; we better get you home, eh?'

'Ok...' Milly agreed with a small pout, before leaning forward and frowning at the sleeping form of Alex, though the lights were beginning to wake her up as she flinched and her eyes fluttered open.

'Oh, hello Sleeping Beauty, you quite done?' Gene remarked as she sat up, looking slightly confused.

'Oh...sorry...' Alex mumbled, rubbing her eyes and standing up, not too stable on her feet.

'You feel asleep!' Milly exclaimed accusingly on their way out, climbing into the back of the Quattro.

'Sorry, Milly. I was tired, did you like it?'

Milly nodded. 'Yeah! It was amazing, can we go again?!'

'Maybe, we'll have to see. But for now, shall we go back; you must be tired, too.'

'A bit...' The little girl replied before staring out of the window with a small smile on her face as she thought over the film.

* * *

'Oh, Christ on a bike, Bolly. If you fall asleep this much every time you get stuck in a cupboard with me, we should do it more often. The only time you don't bloody talk is when you're asleep.' Gene muttered as they arrived back home and he noticed that Alex had fallen asleep on the way back. He thought for a moment, and eventually decided to get out, letting Milly out.

'Right, let's get you off to bed, then I'll sort out lazy knickers, here.' He said, opening the door and taking Milly upstairs, making sure she safely in bed; with the lights off before he went back downstairs.

He opened the passenger door and slipped one arm under her legs and another beneath her arms, hauling her out of the car and kicking the door shut.

'Bloody hell, what have you been eating, Bolls? Nothing, by the feel of it. Need some meat on yer.' He murmured, carrying her up the stairs with ease and into her bedroom. Carefully, he lowered her onto the bed, pulling of her boots and bringing the covers up over her sleeping form.

* * *

Milly crept across the darkened landing towards the bathroom, but paused when she saw a dim light on in Alex's room. Peering round the doorway she watched in surprise as Gene stood there for a moment, looking at Alex, and then sighed, leaning down to kiss her gently on the forehead. With a quiet gasp, she made her way back to her own bed, all thoughts of going to the bathroom forgotten as a small contented smile spread across her face and she fell into a deep slumber.

* * *

Gene's eyes traced over her curls, closed eyes and small smile, why was she doing this to him? He refused to be turned into a soft bastard. Especially by _her._

Sighing, almost exasperatedly, he leant down and placed a soft kiss on her forehead, before quickly exiting the room. But as he did so, she rolled over and murmured, 'E.T, phone home...'

* * *

It was dark, yet again...she needed to get home, she had to. She had to see her daughter, see her face, her eyes, her hair. She had to remember her daughter. Molly.

'Molly?' She asked aloud in the darkness, her eyes straining for any sign of her daughter. But no-one came, nobody.

'If I could just phone you, Molly. I need to hear your voice; I have to come home...phone home...' She said, her voice ringing through the empty dark surroundings. There was no-one there. No Molly, no doctors, nobody. Just her, alone.

A great sense of loneliness washed over her. Where was Molly? She felt so alone. Why was her daughter not here? She hadn't forgotten completely, had she?

But then, something changed. Not her surroundings, no, they stayed pitch black. But something else.

She felt a pair of lips gently touch her forehead, kissing it tenderly, caringly. Making her feel safe, loved, even. But all too soon, they went, but the feeling didn't.

The loneliness was driven away, and she felt as if there was _someone_ there, someone who cared enough to kiss her on the forehead. But who?

* * *

Alex didn't awake from her dream until morning, and even then, it was still crystal clear in her memory. She had dreamt the same dream all night. She had just stood there, in her dream, and remembered the feel of someone's lips on her forehead. But who's, she didn't know.

* * *

**There we are...hope that didn't disappoint, the Galex is really going to be picking up in the next few chapters, but please review this one and tell me what you thought! Thanks for reading! X =D**


	11. Time's Up

**Ok, first of all, massive apology for not quite a while, I suddenly found myself quite busy and weighted down with homework, bleugh. But here is chapter eleven, please keep those lovely, helpful reviews coming! Happy Reading!**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes...damn BBC...=D**

**Chapter Eleven – Time's Up**

* * *

It was Wednesday. They were taking the bullet out today. She was going to go home.

Alex held that belief firmly in her mind as she, Gene and Milly walked into CID. But to her it wasn't a belief, it was a _fact._ She had to believe that, she had to know that she was finally going home, to her daughter, to where she belonged. If she didn't believe that, then what was there left to believe in? Molly needed her, she needed Molly. No-one here needed her as much as her daughter. Did they?

Chris? Ray? Shaz? Milly?

Gene?

_Gene._ Was he real, or not? Alex didn't know, he seemed real enough... She wondered what happened to this world when she left it, did it just stop? Or carry on somehow? She found herself hoping desperately for the latter; it was hard to imagine a world where Gene Hunt didn't exist somewhere. Impossible, almost, the Manc without the Lion...no, he had to be real...somewhere.

'Bolly? What on earth are yer thinking in that 'ead of yours? You've been silent for more than two minutes, I might have ter get on ter the world records.'

'Oh, I was just thinking...we should go and see Pete Crowley, he is her ex-husband after all.' She suggested, suddenly thinking about what would happen to the case once she was home. What would happen to Milly?

To her surprise, and his own, Gene agreed. 'We better fire up the Quattro, then. Chris?'

'Yes, Guv?' Chris replied, ambling over to them and stubbing out his cigarette as he came.

Gene handed him a note, Alex recognised it as the mysterious piece of paper from Pete Crowley's diary and she quickly banished the memories of the event that had followed finding it. Too risky...

'Look up these two names, see if they're working for Terry Marley. Mush!'

Chris scuttled off, Ray following hastily behind with a cigarette hanging from his mouth and a faraway look to his eyes.

_Probably got lucky last night..._Gene thought, glancing at Alex. _S'alright for some... _He lost his train of thought as a small hand tugged his jacket and he looked down to see Milly staring up at him.

'Gene, are you going again?' She moaned, Alex almost laughing at her puppy dog eyes, Molly used to do the same thing.

Gene pouted thoughtfully for a moment before glancing up at Shaz. 'Shaz, do you want ter come with us in the Quattro? Then you can stay with Milly whilst me and Miss unusually silent Bolly-Knickers here talk to Pete Crowley?'

'Yeah, sure, Guv. No problem.' Shaz replied, getting up and giving Milly a wide smile.

'Is that alright, Milly?' Gene checked as before they left.

'Yeah! Thank you, Gene...and Shaz.' Milly said sweetly, hugging Gene.

'Right, erm, we better be off.' Gene said awkwardly, glancing up at the clock as he disentangled himself from the red haired six year old.

And that was when Alex looked up at the clock. She jumped when she saw it, was she seeing things...?

'Bolly? What's up, finally found yer tongue? I have ter admit, I was getting worried.'

'Sixty minutes...I've got sixty minutes...' She murmured, more to herself than him. And sure enough, when she looked up again, it was still the same.

Rather than the usual one-to-twelve around the face of the wooden clock, there was a message flashing, black against white.

_60 minutes...60 minutes...60 minutes..._The message still flashed in her peripheral vision as they went outside, a silence, ringing too loud in her head.

'What the hell are you talking about, Bolly? Get yer arse in the car and start talking properly.'

Alex didn't even bother with a witty comeback and just got into the passenger seat, feeling unnerved by the sudden realisation of just how _soon_ she was leaving. Did she really want to leave it all behind this fast?

* * *

She took a deep breath, taking in the familiar smell of the Quattro, old cigarette smoke and a faint leather smell, plus something else...masculine...subtle..._him. _Gene.

She closed her eyes and inhaled once more, surprised at the comfortable familiarity of the scent...she would miss it. She would miss _him_.

But still, going home was a good thing. Wasn't it? But what if she died there? Or something went wrong...

She banished the unspeakable thoughts from her mind with a small pang of shame. Those things didn't matter; all that mattered was that she tried to get home, that she kept fighting to see Molly again. Molly was everything to her, she _had_ to get home. But while she was still here, for the next hour, her last hour, she might as well do her job. You only live once. So she snapped back to her usual self as they drew up outside a small terraced house - which according to their database - was Crowley's address.

* * *

'Straight in for the kill, Guv?' She asked, forcing her hands into her front pockets as Gene pounded on the door and she looked down the street. It had to be said, it wasn't the nicest part of town. The brick buildings were dirty and crumbling in places, the pavement littered with cigarette butts and the remains of a bad boozy night out was smashed on the road, green glass everywhere.

'Hello?' A man answered the door with a rough voice. He was in need of a shave, judging from the stubble residing on his jaw and perhaps a haircut. He may once have been handsome, but now his face had a slight gaunt look to it, his eyes dull and framed by dark bags, the result of one too many sleepless nights.

'Pete Crowley? I'm DI Alex Drake, this is DCI Hunt. Can we come in?'

He looked at her and licked his lips, giving Alex a frightening sense of déjà vu. Another Terry Marley. '_You _can, if you want, love.' He said, opening the door wider with a creepy smile. 'Leave the scum out here.' He added with a glare at Gene.

At that Gene grunted, shoving Pete backwards and slamming him against the wall, gripping his throat tightly and putting his face up close to his.

'You'll find that the only scum around here is you. Now DI Drake is a police officer, and you'll pay her some respect, she isn't for you to have dirty fantasies about. Now you'll answer our questions, understood?' He growled, giving him a final shove and stepping back.

'Oh yeah, like you don't have the odd fantasy, woman like her.' Pete drawled back, massaging his neck where the imprint of Gene's grip could still be seen.

Gene decided to ignore the remark and move on; there was no point in wasting time arguing with a low-life like him. 'I presume you're aware of yer ex-wife's death?' He asked, still talking as if he were nothing but a speck of muck on his shoe.

'Yeah, some of your lot rang to tell me. What do you want?' He spat, eyeing Gene dangerously.

'Bolly?' Gene prompted, allowing her to step forward, keeping a watchful, protective eye on her. Ready with clenched fist if the slimy bastard tried anything.

Alex stepped forward boldly, showing no sign of fear and handed the diary to him. 'I believe this is yours?' She inquired, studying his body language and expressions. He was glancing at the diary nervously, as if it were a bomb, about to go off at any moment and release some dark secret.

'Yeah, it's mine. What's your point?' He asked defensively. Just a bit too defensively for someone who's supposed to know nothing...

'Care to tell us what it was doing in your boss' office?' Alex pushed, noticing how he shrugged a little too quickly for her liking...he knew something.

'I dunno, do I? I lost it a few days ago, he probably picked it up.'

She nodded, playing along. 'Ok. And, could you tell us where you were on Monday morning, around ten, ten-thirty?'

Pete's eyes began nervously darting between the two of them, his fingers twitching anxiously. 'Why? I didn't kill her! Why are you asking?!'

'We're just asking, now answer, you useless bastard.' Gene snarled, snatching back the diary.

'Um...well, I...I was in work, weren't I! You numbskulls! I was bloody working, gotta earn a living, you know. I don't sit around like you pricks.' He said, showing crooked, yellow teeth. From what they had seen – and heard – they weren't about to believe his alibi.

'Ok, then. We'll go now, goodbye Mr Crowley.' Alex replied, not putting any feeling into the sentence as she stepped outside, glad to be out of the musty, dingy and dark house. She heard a loud thud behind her and span around just in time to see Gene step back, revealing Pete on the floor, clutching his stomach with his face twisted in pain.

'Nice aim.' Alex remarked as they walked away, Gene wearing an ever so slightly smug smile.

He gave her a non-committal grunt. 'A lying bastard if I ever saw one.'

She smiled. 'He was lying; I'm ninety-nine percent sure. His body language, his eyes...everything about his screamed uncomfortable.'

* * *

But the smile soon fell as she saw a road sign change out of the very corner of her eye; she turned her head to see a new message blaring out at her, screaming panic.

_7 minutes...7 minutes...7 minutes..._

Seven minutes. She only had seven minutes left in 1981...

'Psychiatry again, Bolls?'

She smiled at him, hoping it would hold back the tears threatening to fall. She had to work even harder to keep there as the Quattro came into view, Milly waving enthusiastically to them out of the window, that adorable big grin plastered on her face.

'Psychology.' She corrected, waving back along with him. She started to frantically look around her surroundings, desperately taking everything in, everything that she realised she had grown to like about the 1980s. The retro cars, mad fashion, whacky posters......Gene.

Yes, she liked him. He'd been her constant this entire time, always there to keep her on her toes at work, and to drink endless amounts of alcohol with her in Luigi's, just talking. He was a good man...

And maybe, if things had been different...

But she had no time to ponder over what would have happened if she had met Gene in her own time, if she had been able to stay, because that's when the dizziness started.

She stopped suddenly, swaying on the spot as her vision blurred and Gene's words seemed to echo around her, as if she were in a long tunnel – perhaps she was. Maybe she was stuck, in a tunnel between two times, two worlds. Two people.

'Bolly? Bolls? Alex!' Gene shouted, catching her as she fell sideways, her eyelids drooping. She could just see his face, swimming in front of her, could only just hear his words, though they sounded distant.

'Bolly, don't close yer eyes, you daft bitch. Stay with me, Bolls....Alex?'

'I'm sorry...' She breathed, her words cutting him in a way he hadn't expected. He realised he wasn't breathing as her body went limp in his arms and her eyes fluttered to a close.

'Alex.' He whispered, holding her as she lay in his arms on the cold London concrete, raindrops beginning to fall along with the un-anticipated tears that seemed to be forming behind his sea-green eyes.

* * *

She saw the bullet rush away from her, the rules of time disobeyed as everything played in reverse, the events that had brought her here happening in reverse.

And then she felt something clear from her head, something heavy that she'd hadn't been aware was there before. Like a big wall had been lifted, breaking the connection.

That's when the darkness approached, freezing everything out and taking her mind, engulfing it with the nothingness.

* * *

**I hope that makes up for the delay! Please review and tell me your thoughts! I will try to update faster this time, promise! X =D**


	12. The Only Road

**Thanks again to all you lovely readers and reviewers, all your support and encouragement is so great, thank you! Here's the next chapter, enjoy! **

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes...though if we don't get some Galex action in series 3, we should start conspiring against the writers... (Evil Grin) X =D**

**Chapter 12 – The Only Road**

* * *

But the nothingness began to fade, if it could do that. All she knew was that she could see _something_, but it was blurred. They seemed to be people, stood in a room, but her vision was hazy, her senses numbed by a sleepy heaviness, sedating her body. Everything was very _white_, blinding, bright white, all around her.

And then the voices came, distant just as before. Like she was stood down a long tunnel, hearing their words echo off the empty walls until they reached her ears. But even then, her brain was slow to process them.

'_...Not responding...'_

'_...Bullet is out...'_

'_...Not waking up...'_

'_...Heart rate slowing...'_

'_...Isn't coming out from the anaesthetic...'_

'_...Slim chance of survival...'_

'_...Only being kept alive by life support now...'_

It took a while for Alex's numbed brain to piece together the detached, fragmented sentences, but eventually, she made the connections. And realisation hit her like a ton of bricks.

She was dying. She was dying in 2008, and possibly here, too. She was going to die.

'No, Molly....Molly needs me...please, let me go home...Molls...' She gasped, though she knew no-one could hear her. She wasn't there, and she wasn't home. She was in some sort of no man's land between the two worlds. Stuck in a long tunnel.

Suddenly, the scene changed, it was still white, but the painfully bright light had dimmed a little. That was...until she appeared.

Molly walked towards her, bathed in light that moved with her, shining and reflecting off her hair like an angel's halo, glowing from her clothes. Alex's eyes drank in the image of her daughter, her beautiful Molly. She could see her face now, her clothes, her hair...her eyes. She could remember.

'Molls...?' She whispered, wondering if she would talk.

Molly smiled faintly at her, but Alex still remained unsure of whether she could actually see her, or if she was just intruding on her own thoughts and words. Perhaps, if she talked, Alex was only really hearing what Molly was saying to herself in 2008, or to her, in a hospital bed. Dying.

'You've got to go back, Mum, it's where you belong now. I've got to go now too. I'm going to blow the candles out.'

Alex shook her head desperately, stepping towards her daughter frantically. 'No! Molly, I can't, you need me. I'm going to come home, Molly. I'm going to keep fighting, Molls. I'm _not_ going to die.' She insisted, tears welling up behind her eyes, threatening to fall.

'They're going to turn the life support machine off. Don't fight it, Mum. It'll only make it worse; I hope there is somewhere you go when you die. I hope it's nice there, and that's there's someone to look after you.'

'No, Molly!' Alex sobbed, the tears rolling down her face as she gazed at her daughter, distraught. 'I've got to be where I belong, Molls. I'm going to come home, I promised you.'

Molly brushed away a tear that had dropped from her own eye. 'I'll think of you, Mum. As I blow the candles out. It's alright, though. I'm sure that you're somewhere else, where you belong now. Goodbye, Mum.'

'No, Molls!' Alex screamed as her daughter began to fade away, a small smile still on her face. 'Molly!' She stretched out her arm to touch her, to keep her there. But Molly vanished, her parting words echoing around the emptiness.

'Goodbye, Mum.'

'Molly...' Alex whispered, sinking to the ground and lying there as tears streamed down her face and pain coursed through her body. She was gone. She had died in 2008. This was the only road she would ever have, a world with Gene Hunt. There was no future for her anymore with her daughter. How was that fair?

She would never see her Molls again, never hear her laugh, never see her eyes light up as she told her what she'd learnt, or where Evan had taken her...

She would never blow out the candles with her, on her twelfth birthday cake.

* * *

Molly's face swam into view, shrouded in darkness, the only light coming from twelve candles that stood on a large chocolate cake.

Molly closed her eyes, took a deep breath...And blew the candles out. And that was the last time Alex saw her daughter.

The darkness was suffocating, not just her surroundings, but the dark veil over her mind. The incomprehensible pain and hurt, hitting so deep, it cut her soul. She couldn't even cry, her eyes wouldn't tear up...she felt...empty, alone, so alone in the darkness without her daughter; without a future or someone to share it with.

* * *

Alex slowly became aware of two strong arms holding her to a warm body; her head leant back against a broad chest. She gradually began to feel the rain, drizzling down onto her, seeping through her clothes and stinging her skin with its cold touch.

'Bolly, Bolls? Come on, wake up, Bolly. We're gonna catch a bloody cold at this rate, and I'd quite like to get out of the Les bleedin' Miserables position, if yer don't mind.'

Her eyes gently flickered open, to see Gene's face inches from her own. He was sat on the damp pavement, holding her in his arms, her legs curled up over his and her head resting back against his chest.

'I'm alive...' She whispered in amazement, reaching a hand up from where she lay, unmoving, to touch his face. 'Amazing...I'm still alive here...'

'Yes, hallelujah Drake, yer bloody alive! Now that we've covered that fact, I'm guessing you want to get up, because much as I'm enjoying the view, I'm not sure you're too crazy about it.'

Alex glanced down to notice that when she fell, her shirt had slipped down a little way, and from the way she was laid in his arms, he could most probably see everything. 'Yes, if you don't mind.' She replied, sitting up, still in a slight daze as he pulled her to her feet.

'Whoa, steady on Bolly; buy me a drink first, alright?' He said as she fell forward into him after losing her balance, her head feeling dizzy.

Alex regained her balance. 'I am most certainly not buying you a drink, Gene. Because guess what, I'm bloody stuck here! With you!' She shouted, her voice sounding slightly drunk. If he hadn't been with her all day, Gene would have thought she had drank one too many.

'I see the insanity lobe in that brain of yours hasn't been damaged. Get in the car, Bolls. You'll catch yer death of cold.' He told her, opening the door of the Quattro where Shaz was sat looking at Alex, concerned.

'What happened?' Milly asked Shaz, also looking at Alex.

'Nothing, Milly. It's alright; she just had a bit of a fall. She's Ok now.' Shaz reassured her, clicking her seatbelt in before doing her own.

'I am not bloody alright!' Alex said, feeling the familiar sting behind her eyes that she knew to be the building of tears. 'I'm stuck here, in the prehistoric ages, with bloody Gene Hunt! And, I am _never_ going to see my daughter again.' She sobbed, leaning her head against the cold window and allowing the tears to fall as Gene raced through the streets.

'Right, Shaz and Milly, out. Shaz, look after her. I'm taking Madame Fruitcake here back home.' He instructed, glancing at Alex who seemed to have cried herself out, her eyelids drooping to a close.

'No problem, Guv. I hope she's alright.'

Gene nodded. 'Right. See what the boys have done in our absence as well, see ya later.'

* * *

'I thought I was going home...but I'm not, ever. I've lost her Gene, I've lost Molly.' Alex told him quietly when he got back into the Quattro.

He turned his head to look at her, scrutinising her pained expression and the many tear-tracks running down her cheeks, her wet curly hair stuck to the side of her face.

'I know. I'm taking yer back, get yer dry.' He replied, punching the car into life and screeching away at top speed as Alex fell back into silence again.

* * *

She struggled against him as he tried to lift her out of the car, pushing his arms away and shrinking back. 'I can walk, Gene. I'm not disabled.'

'You may not be disabled, Bolly. But that's twice you've fainted on me this week, must be having an effect on yer. Now, just let me carry yer, you can hardly talk straight, let alone bloody walk.'

She sighed. 'Fine.' She gave in, relaxing her body so he could pick her up and carry her up the stairs, putting her down on her bed, where she quickly sat up.

'You need to put some weight on, Bolly. You weigh nothing.' He remarked, pulling her high heels off.

She ignored the comment and batted his hand away. 'What are you doing, Gene?' She asked, starting to shiver slightly.

'Bolly, you're shivering and yer hands are shaking. Just let me sort you out fer once and be quiet.' He told her, moving to the buttons on her shirt.

Alex looked down at her hands and sure enough, they were shaking and she realised she couldn't even feel her fingers. 'Gene! Get your hands off my top!' She exclaimed when he undid the top button.

He sighed. 'Bolly, what have I just said? Shut yer mouth, and concentrate on not shivering. It's not like I haven't caught glimpses of yer before. I'm just trying ter get yer warm. Face it; you'll still have yer fancy French underwear to cover yer up.'

She had to admit, she wouldn't be able to get her wet clothes of herself, but Gene acting the perfect gentlemen was an odd concept to her, she didn't trust him completely. However, it seemed she had no choice as he moved further down, undoing the buttons quickly and slipping her shirt off. As he did so, his fingers brushed against her damp skin and sent shivers down her spine. It was a bloody good job she was already shivering, or he would have noticed.

Pulling her tight jeans off, he hastily averted his eyes. The less images of her wearing nothing but her underwear that stuck in his head, the better. He could trust himself to not do anything now, but later, once he was alone, he didn't want the images returning to him...

'Stay 'ere, I'll be back in a minute.' He told her blankly, disappearing and coming back with a pair of his warmest pyjamas in his hand. He didn't usually sleep in a top, but he did have them. Looking at her was unavoidable as he handed them to her, and he swallowed, trying to keep the blood where it should be. It only worked to a certain extent...

'Put these on, that black shirt of yours isn't gonna do any good.' He commanded, leaning back against the wall across from her, crossing his arms and watching her.

Alex stared at the plain navy blue garments in her hands, she found herself wondering if he'd ever worn them...as she pulled on the shirt part his familiar scent crept up her nose, causing an involuntary sigh to escape her lips.

'What?' Gene asked, still determinedly looking behind her at the bedpost.

'Oh, nothing.' Alex quickly lied, pulling the bottoms on and standing up. The dizziness still lingered a little, but she could walk in a straight line and Gene's face wasn't swimming in front of her. The pyjamas were a little too big for her, obviously, but she could cope. They smelled...really good.

'Thanks, Gene. Right, now you've had a good gaze at me in my underwear, you can go now.'

'Bolls, shut yer mouth, for the last time. Get back on the bed.' He ordered, suddenly realising how that sounded. 'I didn't mean...oh, sod it. Just get under the covers and try get warm, go to sleep.'

She did what he said, bringing the duvet up to her chin and closed her eyes.

'Right, I'm off ter get Milly, I'll be back soon. Don't move from there, Bolly-Knickers, alright?'

She murmured in reply and he turned to go, just reaching the door when he heard her voice behind him. 'Thank you, Gene.'

He looked back at her; she was looking at him with wide, almost tearful eyes. Damn it. 'S'alright, Gene Genie's job.' He said, leaving the room and hurrying down the stairs before he could walk over and kiss her, just like he longed to. What the hell was happening to him?

* * *

'Is Alex alright?' Milly asked as Gene carried her inside.

'She'll be fine; she's made of tough stuff. But at the moment, we need to get you to bed.' He replied, opening the door to Milly's room and setting her down.

'Aw, can't I stay up?' She pleaded.

'No, Milly. It's already ten o'clock, you should have been asleep hours ago.' He said with a smile.

'Ok...' She reluctantly agreed, changing into her pyjamas and climbing into bed.

'Right, goodnight, Milly.'

'Night.' She mumbled, her eyelids drooping. Maybe she was a bit more tired than she thought.

Gene closed the door quietly and took a few steps down his landing, peering round Alex's doorway.

'Bolly?' He whispered, seeing if she was asleep.

Her head lifted in the dark to look his direction. 'Mm?'

'You still cold?' He asked, looking at her shivering body under the covers.

'A bit.' She admitted, rubbing her arms.

He sighed. 'Good god, Bolly. Yer out to ruin my reputation.' He muttered. 'I'll be right back.'

Alex waited, confused, for him to come back and when he did, she quickly cast her eyes down. He was wearing his pyjama bottoms, no top as usual.

Her eyes widened – thank god he couldn't see her face in the dark – as he climbed under the covers, reaching out his long arms to wrap around her, pulling her against his warm body.

_Oh no...oh no...shit. _Alex screamed in her head, her breath caught in her throat and that strange feeling came back to her, but strengthened by a hundred.

'Gene, what are you doing?' She finally got the breath to ask.

He made a tutting noise with his tongue. 'Getting yer warm, what does it look like? Now shut up and go ter sleep, stop complaining.'

She had to admit...it felt nice...very nice...too nice. But she couldn't resist. 'I'm not complaining.' She muttered, moving back until her body was completely against his, warming it and she tucked her head under his chin.

Did he just hear that right? Maybe this wasn't such a good idea, her pressed against him with his arms around her, on top of just undressing her wasn't doing him any favours. But lying like this, holding her, it felt...good. Better than he cared to admit.

He breathed in deeply through his nose, relaxing himself. Luckily, he managed to keep his control and eventually, soon after her, he drifted off to sleep.

* * *

**I dunno if I should have made Alex more visibly upset about Molly, but that will be in the next chapter. Anyway, hope this was reasonably good! I thought you might all be a bit tired with cookies, so if you review this time, I'll give you a brownie! Tee hee, X =D**


	13. The Right Thing

**Hi, wow, thanks for all the reviews for the last chapter! Here's the next chapter, I'm actually really excited about this one! Tee hee. Could I also say, I know I reply to all reviews, but one was an anonymous review, but was signed 'Sarah', so I'd like to say thank you very much Sarah, for the really lovely review, thanks! Happy Reading, and...(Hint, hint) reviewing. **

**=D Cheeky, me. **

**Disclaimer – I don't own anything but my plot and Milly!**

**Chapter 13 – The Right Thing**

* * *

Alex woke to feel a pair of strong, warm arms wrapped around her torso and her head leant back against a broad, firm chest. She turned her head to see Gene laid, looking at her and the memories of the night before came rushing back to her. And she had to admit, she felt a lot warmer now, the shivering had certainly gone.

'Warm now, Bolly?'

She nodded. 'Yeah, thanks. But...that better just be your knee that's stuck in the back of my leg.'

He swallowed and moved himself until he was sat up, looking away from her.

In spite of herself, she smiled. 'Um...it's alright, Gene...' She muttered, blushing.

'Yeah, well...I'm only human, Bolls.'

'I know, um...what time is it?' She asked, grabbing the opportunity to change the subject, but she couldn't shove away the feeling that there was something missing. A smoke shield in her memory that was holding some sort of knowledge back, something she hadn't remembered yet. Something that was stopping her from half beating him to death for his reaction...

'Never mind the time, Bolly. Are you alright?' He asked, looking at her concerned. 'Because you were tossing and turning all night, screaming your daughter's name.' He told her, and that's when it hit.

Molly. Molls. Her daughter. She could never see Molly again, because she was dead there now. Molly had said goodbye, and she was stuck in the 1980s now.

'Molly...' She whispered, the tears falling and streaming down her face as the smoke shield disappeared within a second, the remembrance cutting her through like a knife and stabbing her heart all over again.

'No, Molly, I can't see her...oh my God...Molls.' She sobbed, wiping every tear away as it fell, despair and desperation engulfing her feelings and blocking everything else out.

Gene watched her, almost curiously as she cried, her eyes wide and expression torn. 'Bolly, do yer want to tell me what's going on? Before I have ter give yer an hug.'

She looked at him and sniffed, wiping her eyes once again, her brain desperately grappling for some sort of story, something that would make sense. She couldn't exactly tell him the truth, could she? Else he wouldn't just be threatening with the men in white coats.

_Think, Alex, think! Molls..._

She was surprised her brain could even function properly, considering the mess of emotions cluttering her mind.

'There...there was a custody battle a while back...Pete won, she's gone to live with him in Canada and...I...I can't ever see her again.' She choked out, hating herself for lying to him. 'It's like I'm dead to her.' She added quietly, the tears stinging her eyes as the longing to see her Molly almost tore her apart.

But she was gone; she wasn't in that world anymore. What was she going to do? There was no-one here to lean on, no-one to catch her fall.

Gene? No, it was physical what he felt for her, just a build up of sexual tension. And yes, he cared for her, but not in that way. Never like that, definitely not.

'I'm sorry, Bolls. I've...I've got ter go get Milly up, Ok?' He said, getting up off the bed and walking over to the door, giving her some privacy.

She nodded, not bothering to look up at him. 'Yeah. Thanks, I'll be fine.' But it was a lie; she would _not_ be fine, not without any hope of ever seeing her daughter again. Some people say that hope is what you have left when there's nothing, so now that hope had gone, what had she left to hold onto?

She felt like sitting in Luigi's alone and drowning out all the pain with extremely large amounts of alcohol, and then collapsing, pissed and depressed, on the floor.

But she wouldn't, because she couldn't. Gene wouldn't let her do that, she knew. Instead she'd get up, go to work and do her job, because that was what she seemed to be bloody stuck here to do.

'Why me?' She asked nobody in particular, dragging her weary body out of bed and trudging to the bathroom.

_God, I look a mess._ She thought, glancing in the mirror as she washed her hands. Her face was pale from crying, her eyes bloodshot and tear tracks were imprinted into her white face, giving her a gaunt, ghostly appearance. Splashing her face with cold water, she then applied make-up to detract from her pale face and troubled eyes. How had it come to this?

* * *

Gene saw her coming down the stairs, fully dressed and looking a little better. But as she came closer he could see the eye-shadow and mascara disguising her pained expression and her posture not its usual straight, confident self.

'Ready, Bolly-Kecks?' He said, acting normally and hoping she would improve as the day wore on, but she just nodded in reply.

'Alex, are you Ok?' Milly asked once they were in the Quattro, wiping the crumbs from her toast away from her mouth.

Alex smiled weakly at the little girl. 'I'll be alright; I just got a little upset.'

'I used to think grown-up's never got sad, until Mummy started crying every time that man came round.'

Gene almost stamped on the brakes, just almost. 'What man, Milly?' He asked quickly.

'I don't know, I used to have to go into my room when he came. He just talked to Mummy. I didn't like him, he looked scary. I thought he was hiding under my bed.'

'Milly, what did this man used to talk to your Mum about?' Alex inquired, looking round at her.

Milly shrugged. 'Dunno...I couldn't really hear them. I only heard Mummy call him Pete once.'

This time Gene did slam his foot down on the brakes, pulling up onto the curb and twisting in his seat to look at Milly. 'His name was Pete? Are yer sure, Milly?'

She nodded, looking at him fearfully. 'Yeah...why? Who is he?' She asked, glancing between Gene and Alex for answers.

Alex sighed. It was hard to be a child, caught up in an adult's world yet still be shielded and hidden from their dark secrets. 'Milly, it's alright. Don't worry about it. Do you know who your Dad is?'

The confused girl shook her head. 'No, Mummy said I didn't have a Daddy. It was just us two...did she lie?'

By now, Gene had started driving again, this new piece of information making him think. Had Pete Crowley been there the day Samantha Jones had been murdered? Why had he been going? What had they been talking about?

And was there a possibility that the man on the CCTV tapes was Pete Crowley? Had he killed his ex-wife?

'No, no, Milly, she wasn't lying. Don't worry, everything's alright.' Alex reassured her as The Quattro drew up outside the station and they went inside.

* * *

'Christopher! Raymoundo!' Gene barked as Alex went to sit at her desk, head in hands.

'What's wrong with her?' Ray asked, jabbing his cigarette in Alex's direction.

'Ignore her, she's got the decorators in.' Gene answered dismissively, prompting Alex to lift up her head and scowl at him before crossing her arms on the desk and resting her head on them.

Ray rolled his eyes and turned back to Gene. 'Anyway, Guv, me and Chris looked up those two names for you, can't find 'em anywhere.'

He frowned. 'Nowhere? Nothing? Nada?'

Chris came over, running a hand through his newly bleached hair.

'Christ on a bike, Christopher! What have yer done ter yer hair? You look like a right fairy.' Gene remarked as Chris stopped in front of him.

'I love it, it looks really modern.' Shaz piped up, smiling at her boyfriend.

'Yeah, well...like Ray was saying, there's nothing on 'em. I mean, there doesn't even seem to be anyone under those names working for Marley, Guv.' Chris said, confirming Ray's story.

Alex now looked up, trying to pull herself together. 'Well, who says they're names?' She asked, trying to think past the loss she felt and concentrate on her job; analysing all possibilities.

Gene looked at her curiously. 'How do yer mean, Bolly?'

She sighed. 'Oh I don't know, I'm just saying.' She replied, putting her head back on her arms again.

'Oh, I see. Well next time, try saying something actually useful, Bolls.'

'Anyway, Guv, what happened when you and Drake went to see Pete Crowley?' Ray asked, taking a drag on his cigarette.

'He didn't say much, ter be honest. Lied about his alibi, even I could tell that without Miss Marple's psychiatry crap.'

'It's psychology!' Alex suddenly screamed, getting up and storming out of the office. 'If I'm going to be bloody stuck here, then you might as well learn to say it bloody right!' They heard her shout as another door slammed shut, presumably the one to the ladies toilet.

Both Ray and Chris whistled as she stormed out but Gene just stared after her and swore. 'Shit.' He muttered, going after her. 'Bolly!'

Ray and Chris exchanged confused glances. Since when had the almighty Gene Hunt run after a hormonal woman? Never, that was the answer, never. So why the hell was he doing it now?

'What in the name of all that is holy going on with the Guv and DI Drake?' Ray asked, stubbing out his cigarette, his expression still shocked.

Chris shrugged. 'Absolutely no idea, you don't think he's...' he gestured vaguely with his hand in the air, 'you know...'

Ray frowned, being a bit slow. 'What?'

Chris looked around the office furtively and leant over to whisper 'screwing her.'

Ray's eyes popped wide open and he lit a new cigarette, taking a long drag. 'No...you don't think? The Guv and DI Drake, he hates her!'

Chris shrugged dismissively. 'I dunno, but what I do know, is that he does _not_ run off after hormonal women.'

* * *

'Bolly!' Gene called, marching into the ladies toilets, bold as brass. She was stood in the corner, her face somewhere between devastation and anger. There was no-one else in here, well, not many women worked at the station, to be honest.

She looked up at him and her eyes hardened. 'What the hell are you doing in here?! I don't know if you've seen the bloody sign on the bloody door, Gene!' She yelled, reverting back to forming quotation marks around his name.

'Yes, I did see the bloody sign Drake, and yes, I ignored it, just like you! And don't start waggling yer bloody fingers when yer say my name!' He argued back, not caring if the rest of the station could hear by now, not caring if the rest of London could hear!

'Oh, I am sorry, Gene! But that must be it! This can't be real, it can't. Real life wouldn't be so unfair as to stick me here, without my daughter, but with a bastard like you!' She shouted, still making the quotation marks.

He stepped closer to her, bringing himself up to his full height. 'Listen, I know yer upset, Bolly. But I. Am. Not. A. Bastard.' He punctuated every word, poking her on the shoulder at the last syllable.

She flinched away from him, staring at him coldly. 'Leave me alone, then. Just bugger off to your nice little office, where everyone worships you, and leave me alone!'

He sighed, looking away exasperatedly and then back again. 'Bolly, just calm down, yer upset, I know, and I shouldn't have shouted, alright?'

Her eyes widened slightly and her eyebrows rose. 'You're sorry?'

He pouted and thought for a moment, checking round to make sure they were alone. 'Sod it, yes. Happy now?'

'Not really, but a bit better.'

'Right, good, because I'm taking yer home.' He told her, opening the door to see Chris, Ray and Shaz scuttle away with guilty looks on their faces.

'What? But I need to be here, we have to talk to Pete Crowley again, and possibly Terry Marley about that note.' She replied, not moving from where she was stood.

'Bolly, believe it or not, but we did actually get results before you came here, too, you know. Now, get out here, before I have ter carry yer again.'

She sighed and gave in. 'Fine, but you better tell me what happens when you and Milly come back.' She warned, walking out and following him outside to the Quattro.

* * *

Somewhere on the way home, Alex drifted off to sleep and the dreams crept up on her, a simple black background with a white blur in the distance.

Slowly, the blur shifted into focus and if Alex had been awake, she would have screamed. But, bound by sleep she remained silent as the clown raced towards her, his face masked by white make-up. But she knew now that under the mask was her father's face. Tim Price. Her Dad, the man who had tried to kill her and her mother. And knowing that made this clown all the scarier.

Unlike before, he didn't disappear as he grew closer he simply stopped, standing frozen in front of her. And then he spoke the words that already sounded so dreadful in her head. But aloud, they cut her once again, that knife of pain becoming horribly familiar as it sank through her skin and hit her very soul.

'You are never going back, Alex, never. You are always going to be here, you will never see Molly again, Alex.'

* * *

She woke, screaming silently as the tears began to sting her cheeks again and she realised that she was laid on a sofa, brown leather. The walls around her were a nondescript cream colour and her surroundings gradually processed through her brain to tell her this was Gene's lounge.

Groggily, she sat up, the clown's words still echoing around her memory, their icy tone cutting, cutting and cutting her, over and over again. Where was Gene? How had she got from the Quattro in here?

After a few moments her eyes fell on a note that was sat on the coffee table in front of her. Sighing, she picked it up, holding back her tears as she attempted to read it.

_Bolly, _

_You fell asleep, so I carried you in here. Will be back with Milly at about six-ish. – Don't do anything stupid or reckless, suicides take too long to write up. _

_Gene._

She clicked her tongue and dropped it unceremoniously into the bin. 'Bloody cheek, as if killing myself would make any difference.' She muttered, staring blankly out of the window and allowing herself to finally have her whole crying jag.

Molly. Molly. Molly. Molls. _Her_ daughter needed her, and she couldn't go there. She was stuck here, without any way out. Stuck here. Forever.

'Why me?!' She suddenly yelled out in a surge of anger, boiling up inside of her and finally bursting out. She was angry, very angry. Why had the fates done this to her, caused her and Molly so much pain? She hadn't done anything wrong, had she?

'Why bloody me?!' She shouted again, getting up and stumbling through to the kitchen, opening cupboard after cupboard until she finally found what she was looking for. At the back of the third cupboard, sat about three bottles of red wine, not cheap like the stuff from Luigi's either. No, it was a little more expensive and had probably cost Gene a bit...

'Oh sod it, it's not real...' She murmured, grabbing all three bottles, plus a large glass and carrying them through to the lounge, collapsing onto the sofa with an already slightly drunk expression. She poured herself a glass....and another...and another...watching the bottles slowly disappear. She welcomed the numbness that the alcohol brought, the soft cushion that dampened the pain, made that knife's stab seem that little bit less painful. But in some ways, it made her feel worse. It dragged up all the memories, letting them float to the surface.

Molly's birthday's...her first day of school...going on holidays....and then, the things Alex would now never see. Molly's thirteenth birthday, fourteenth, fifteenth, and so on...her graduation, university...she would miss so much.

* * *

Alex was only vaguely aware of Gene coming in with Molly as it grew dark outside, she only registered it numbly in the back of her mind as he heard him take the little girl upstairs and put her to bed.

It was only as he entered the lounge and looked at the three empty wine bottles with a groan did she look at him with any sign of recognition.

'Bolly, I was saving them. Yer haven't drunk all of 'em by yerself, have yer?' He asked, looking at her.

Her misty eyes and faraway expression told him all he needed know, but she slurred out an answer anyway. 'Mm-hm...nice wine...sorry...' She mumbled, attempting to stand up as she ignored the room spinning around her.

'Bloody hell, Bolly. I don't think I've ever seen you so drunk.' Gene remarked, steadying her by holding onto her upper arms firmly.

'Mm...first time for everything...' She told him, her words coming out clumsily as she closed her eyes briefly in an attempt to stop the dizziness.

She smelt strongly of alcohol, expensive alcohol. He thought with a slight pang of annoyance, it had not been cheap. But he couldn't disregard how close she was stood, how sexy she looked as she stared at him with that drunken look on her face, her eyes intoxicated.

'Bolly, I think you should go to bed. Yer've had a lot to drink, too much, even by your standards.'

She pouted slightly, leaning forward towards him. 'Hm...do you now? Well...it doesn't matter, because this isn't real, so I don't care. And if this is in my imagination, then I might as well have some fun...'

He sighed, partly to relax himself, and partly from annoyance. 'What the hell are you going on about now?'

'You...' she slurred, 'and me...you _want_ me...I know you do...in the cupboard and the evidence room...'

He looked away from her, extending his arms to hold her a little further away, he didn't want to let go of her, she would most likely fall over. 'Bolly, I really think you should get some sleep.'

'No.' She insisted, stepping closer to him determinedly. 'I've lost everything, why can't I just have this...you want it too...I know you want me, Gene...'

'No, Bolly.' He replied, imploring, begging her with his eyes to stop, to shut up. This was going too far.

'This is my world, Gene...now answer me.' She commanded drunkenly, looking around before casting her eyes back at him. 'You can't run away anywhere now...come on, if this was your last few seconds on earth...what would you do, right here, right now?' She asked, this time her words coming out a lot more clumsily than the last time she had asked the exact same question.

He swallowed, God, she was even difficult and sexy when she was dead to the floor drunk. 'I would...carry you up those stairs...'

She smiled slightly, leaning forward so he could smell the scent of the red wine on her breath. 'Go on...'

'And I would make sure you went to sleep, since you obviously can't take care of yerself.' He finished, stepping back away from her.

She sighed and stepped forward again, lifting her arms up to rest around his neck. 'Gene...' She moaned, 'you _want_ me, I know you do, how long is this going to go on...? I'm giving you what you want, you can have me...just take it.' She whispered, making his eyes grow wide and breath catch in his throat.

She was offering herself, her glorious self to him on a silver platter, and he was hesitating...why? This was what he wanted, wasn't it? He thought back to those times she had mentioned, the cupboard, the evidence room...all proof of what she was saying. He wanted her. Badly.

And he was still undecided as she took his hand and somehow managed to stumble her way up the stairs, into his bedroom. Shutting the door and turning to face him with wide, intoxicated eyes she slipped her hands around his waist, dragging him closer to the bed. 'You know you want this...' She murmured.

Yes. He wanted this, so badly, for so long...so why did this feel so wrong? She was holding him around the waist, pressing her body to his...breathing on him so sexily...why did it feel like he was doing something he shouldn't?

Because she was drunk. She didn't know what she was saying, or doing. And though he may be sober, and though he may want her...this wasn't right. She would wake up in the morning, next to him, and she would regret it. She would regret it.

And that would hurt. It would hurt immensely. Yes, it would be easy, too easy to take her right now, to make her his. To do what he so wanted to do, what he longed for. But she would regret it in the morning. And he would be left hurt and insulted. He had to stop, before he made a mistake.

'No, Alex.' He said firmly, stepping out of her hold and away from the bed. He ignored her sprawled on the middle of the bed in front of him, so openly...gazing at him with bedroom eyes. _Inviting_ him. No.

'No.' He repeated. 'You sleep in here; I'll sleep in your room. I'm not doing this, go to sleep, Bolls.' He told her, leaving the room and shutting the door behind him before he could do something, incredibly, incredibly stupid.

* * *

Alex's shoulders slumped and she rolled over to face the wall, kicking her shoes off and pulling the duvet up over her still fully clothed body. She soon fell asleep, as though none of it had ever happened. The alcohol was strong, and soon made her forget everything. But the clown came back, just as it would every night, until she found a way to stop him.

* * *

Although Alex's drunken mind had washed over the events, Gene would never forget. Never forget the lust, the longing he had felt, the overpowering _want_ to have her. But he was Gene Hunt, and he did the right thing.

He would not take advantage of her when she was drunk.

* * *

**Bites lip...what do you think? Please, please review and tell me your thoughts! Thanks for reading, more will hopefully be up soon! X =D**

**P.S – I really think I should say that just because in this story, Alex used large amounts of alcohol to try drown out her pain, it doesn't work that way in real life. Please don't think that alcohol does drown out pain, because it doesn't. **

**Thanks again, please review! X =D**


	14. You Learn Something New Every Day

****

Hi, a massive thank you to all you lovely reviewers! I know this is a long one, but I didn't want to split it in half. Please review! Cookies and double chocolate muffins for you all! X =D

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes...because if I did, I'd have a Quattro. Tee hee, =D**

**Chapter 14 – You Learn Something New Every Day**

* * *

The clown was running towards her again, his feet on the ground matching the pounding of her heart. Thud, thud, thud. She blinked, expecting him to disappear, but he didn't. Just like last night, he stopped in front of her and spoke, spoke words that hurt her, confused her and cut her.

'You're never going to see Molly again, Alex. You're allowed to have distractions now.'

'Molly!'

Alex woke up, sat bolt upright in bed, her eyes wide open. Someone had screamed out her daughter's name, screamed it like a prayer in the silence. Her name still echoed off the walls...walls that Alex now realised, weren't the usual pale blue of the room she normally slept in.

This was Gene's room.

She instinctively whipped her head around to look next to her, how on earth had she got in here? She tried desperately to search her memories, looking for some sort of recollection of the night before. But she came up empty, nothing, it was blank.

Gene wasn't there, she was in here alone. Where was he and why was she in his bed? She was relieved to see that she was still fully clothed, so she hadn't done anything stupid then. But she found herself wondering...would she have really minded...if she had done something stupid?

'Bolly?'

She looked up to see Gene stood at the door, but it was weird. He wasn't looking at her; he was looking at the wall to the side of her, almost as if he was purposely avoiding her gaze...but why? Wait...they hadn't...? No, she told herself not to be silly, she was still fully dressed for Christ's sakes, plus, she'd remember!

'Mh...What?' She asked in a mumble, wearily rubbing her eyes free of sleep.

'You just screamed out Molly, really loud. S'a good job yer didn't wake Milly up, she's downstairs having breakfast, I was gonna come and wake yer.'

Alex realised that the person who had screamed her daughter's name was her. Was her voice really capable of sounding that desperate, that ear-piercing and deathly screech had not belonged to her, surely?

Milly was having breakfast? She turned to look at the windows, where the weak autumn sunlight was filtering through the translucent curtains and spilling onto the carpet below, illuminating the room in a sultry yellow glow.

* * *

'Oh...sorry, what time is it?' She asked, avoiding the subject of Molly while she stood up and stretched her arms, running a hand through her messy hair.

'It's seven am, Bolly and we need ter be in the office in fifteen minutes, think yer can get dressed and have all yer slap on by then?'

'Yeah...um...Gene, why am I in your room?'

Gene looked down at his feet, he hadn't thought about this. He'd rather hoped that she would remember, be embarrassed and not mention it. Fate was obviously not on his side today, not that it ever was, landing him with a posh mouthy tart that he seemed to find sexy as hell. I mean, how on earth did anyone think that he was capable of working with a woman who by just one look sent him crazy for her?

'You went up ter bed before me, when I got up here I found you curled up in my bloody bed, didn't I, Bolly?' I replied, trying to make sure he sounded convincing.

Alex nodded. 'Oh, right...sorry then, I'll just go...get up. See you in ten.'

'Yeah.' Gene quietly agreed as she slipped past him and back to her own room. As she slipped by he caught the scent of her still sweet smelling hair and felt that same flutter of desire in the pit of his stomach as he had last night.

He watched her go in astonishment. She couldn't remember anything? Nothing at all of her drunken pass at him?

Was that such a bad thing though? After all, it saved the embarrassment on both sides. But still, she'd had three very strong (very expensive) bottles of red wine, and she didn't even have a headache, she just couldn't remember anything.

Well, he guessed that worked out. She didn't remember anything and he didn't get the stress of her having a colossal headache at work. Everyone happy...right?

Gene sighed and shook his head, making his way down the stairs and into the kitchen.

'Right, yer finished Milly?'

Milly looked up from her empty cereal at Gene. 'Yep, thanks. Is Alex up yet?'

Gene nodded, taking her bowl away from her and dumping it in the sink; he'd wash it up later. 'She'll be down soon.' He paused and turned back to her, going to sit down at the table across from her.

'Milly, I'm going to ask you something now, and I want you to tell me the truth, Ok?' He told her, leaning forward over the table and looking at the little girl intently.

Milly frowned, but nodded and agreed. 'Ok, do I get pink wafers afterwards?'

Gene chuckled. 'Yes, you can have some later, now...' He took a deep breath, working out how best to word his question, to make sure she understood.

'Milly, you know how you told us about that man, the one you didn't like, the one your Mum called Pete?'

'Yeah, what about him? You don't know him, do you?' Milly asked, her eyes wide and alarmed.

'No, no, not really. But...Milly, on that morning we found you and yer Mum, had he been there?'

Milly's little brow furrowed in though as though she was sifting through some memories. 'No, I don't think so...'

'What do you mean; you don't think so, Milly?'

She bit her lip and looked down at the table, tracing a small finger over the natural patterns in the wood. 'Well...the doorbell did ring and Mummy went to answer it, and then she told me to go into my room...but I didn't hear anything after that...it was really quiet, I thought she'd gone out...and then there was this big noise, then a massive bang, it hurt my ears.'

Gene did all but stop himself from gasping, she was insightful, yet had no idea how close she had been to being killed too. 'Milly, what happened then?'

Milly sniffed and wiped at her now slightly damp eyes with her hand. 'Then I went out, and Mummy was laid on the floor, I went over to cuddle her, but she didn't wake up...there was red sticky stuff everywhere...she didn't wake up...and then, then...you said she was...was dead.' She choked out, wiping away each small trickling tear as it fell.

'Oh, sorry, Milly. It's alright, yer safe now, it's Ok.' Gene assured her, standing up as he saw Alex enter the room, looking considerably better now. Her eyes were brighter again, her hair glossy and she looked, well...like she always looked. Bloody damn gorgeous.

'Right Bolly, now yer all tarted up, we better get going.' He said, lifting Milly up and handing her a tissue. 'Alright now, Milly?'

Milly nodded and put her head on his shoulder as Gene carried her out, putting her in the backseat of the Quattro and clicking her seatbelt in.

'You put her seatbelt on.' Alex remarked as she got in the passenger seat.

Gene shrugged and put the car in gear. 'She's not a police officer, Bolly. You however are, so I need ter get yer up to speed.'

'Oh yeah, so what did you do in my absence then? Anything? Nothing?' Alex inquired, ignoring the fact that she couldn't even remember what she herself had done while away from CID. The weak sunlight was now totally overpowered outside, taken over by a flat ceiling of dark grey clouds; it was going to rain again.

'Quite a bit actually Mrs Fruitcake, if yer'd shut yer gob up long enough to allow Uncle Gene to talk.'

'Right, sorry.'

He pouted as he threw the Quattro around another corner, stamping on the brakes as he saw a traffic light turn red up ahead.

'Bloody hell, you're gonna get me killed.'

'What a relief that would bloody be.' Gene replied, tapping his foot impatiently as he waited for the light to change. 'Anyway, we did go see Terry Marley and checked Crowley's alibi, we didn't ask about the note though.'

Alex frowned. 'Why not, what did he say about Crowley?'

Gene grimaced and floored the gas pedal as the light turned green, sending the Quattro lurching forward, eating up the damp London road, yard by yard. 'Well, Marley, being the bastard he is backed up Crowley's story, so we thought we were stuffed, but-'

'But what?' Alex pushed, clinging on to the edge of her seat as the speedometer crept up the scale.

'Let me bloody finish! We got back ter the office and got a phone call, turned out ter be Johnny Crester!'

'And his name means something to me because...?' Alex asked vaguely as the Quattro finally stopped in front of the station.

Gene sighed and turned to face him. 'Johnny Crester, small time snout, London's best lowlife but one of the best snouts there is. He has some info about Marley's ship business.'

Alex scrutinised him over the top of the car as she slammed the door shut. 'That's all you achieved? Talked to Marley and came up with nothing, and got a phone call from a grass?'

'Oh shut yer mouth, Bolly and stop acting so high and mighty.' Gen retorted, carrying Milly inside and putting her down when she asked to go play Pong with Viv. He watched her run over to Viv and take charge of the computer before turning back to Alex.

'Crester didn't want ter exchange information over the phone, so we're meeting him in the park in half an hour.' Gene informed her as they entered CID.

'Right everyone, since Bolly 'ere thinks we're all useless, she's gonna make the tea this morning.' Gene announced, shooting her a teasing glance.

She rolled her eyes. 'Fine, I'm going. Tea will be ready in a minute.' She told them all resignedly, walking over in her heels to the kitchenette, flicking the kettle on and taking out some mugs.

* * *

The team were making their way to the park when they stopped at a brick wall at the end of the alleyway they were walking down.

Alex turned around. 'Have we come the wrong way?' She asked, glancing with disgust at the grimy brick wall.

Chris sniggered under his breath and Ray was wearing a 'this is going to be fun' look.

'No, Bolly. We usually come this way, CID tradition to scramble over the wall.' Gene told her, as if it were the most normal thing in the world for a team of grown up men to enjoy doing.

She sighed. 'Gene, I am not having my arse stared at while I climb over a wall with a bunch of pervs like you lot watching.'

'Alright, fair dues. Chris, Ray, you go first.' Gene replied, gesturing to the others who now stubbed out their cigarette's and clambered over the wall.

'Right, go on Bolly-Kecks.' Gene said, looking up at the wall. 'Come on, before it starts raining and I have ter take yer home and undress yer again.'

She scowled at him and remained stubbornly where she was. 'No, you go first.' She insisted, not liking where this was going.

'No, I need ter stay here and give yer a leg up.' He told her, putting his hands so she could step on them and hoist herself up.

'But then you'll look up my arse!' Alex argued, her patience wavering.

'Bolly! We've got a meeting which could prove very fruitful, and you're dilly dallying about, worrying about me looking at your bony backside!'

'Ugh, fine!' She gave in, stepping on his hands and trying to push the feelings away as he placed both hands on her backside, pushing her up and over the wall.

'Nice arse, Bolly.' He commented quietly once he'd dropped down next to her.

* * *

'Right, spill Crester. What you got?' Ray asked, eyeing Johnny suspiciously.

He was shifty looking, Alex decided, but not overall unpleasant the way Pete Crowley and Terry Marley appeared. His hair was lank and greasy, but he didn't have that haunted, sunken look they had.

'How do I know you're not going to bang me up, Mr 'unt?' Johnny replied, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his baggy jeans.

Gene glared at him menacingly. 'Johnny, just tell us what yer've got, we haven't got time to waste on you.'

He sighed, glancing around to make sure they were alone. 'Alright, but this is all I know, I'm not getting you any-fink else, alright?'

Alex nodded and sighed. 'Hurry up, Johnny.' She pushed, turning her head so the wind was no longer blowing her hair into her eyes. She couldn't abolish that strange feeling in her mind that she was missing something, not about the case...but about Gene.

What had happened last night? She would remember going up to bed, surely? What had she done that was so bad, he had lied to her? Because he had lied, she knew that. She didn't have a degree in Psychology for nothing, true, she had been tired this morning but when she had replayed his words over in her head on the way to the park, they didn't sound right.

What on earth had she done last night?

'Well...Marley don't just sell his boats, he keeps some of 'em and...he brings things in off the continent, dunno what exactly, but I've heard 'em, talking about it. He passes the workers that know about it notes, telling 'em which ship he's using so they know what to unload. But that's all I know, and I'll be going now Mr 'unt, if that's alright with you.'

Gene pouted and frowned, lighting up a cigarette. 'Yeah, go get lost, keep yer head down, alright?'

Johnny nodded. 'No probs, Mr 'unt.' He finally said, before turning away and disappearing around the corner.

'Hear that boys, Marley isn't as straight as he appears, let's go have a word.' Gene said, breathing out a trail of tumbling smoke.

'Hold on, Guv, what's Terry Marley got to do with the murder of Milly's Mum, I just don't see how this is completely significant.' Alex piped up, rubbing her hands together in an attempt to warm them up.

'I don't know, Bolly. What I do know however, is that we have no other leads, Pete Crowley's mixed up in this somehow and my arse is bloody freezing out here!' Gene retorted, setting off and when Alex didn't follow, turning to her and calling. 'Fine, if you want to stand out here and freeze, Drake, fine! Just don't expect me ter come and thaw yer out!'

Alex nodded weakly and her expression returned to the present...she'd just remembered something. As she walked back and Gene once again pushed her over the wall, she didn't even care that his hands lingered on her backside for far longer than necessary.

She'd got drunk. She remembered searching for the wine...three bottles of red...quite expensive...she'd drunk all three...

But after that, it went blank, like her mind was shielding her from something she desperately wanted to know. But she would find out, she would, she had to. She had been drunk, she could have done anything.

_Shit. What the hell did I do last night?_

'Bolly, Bolly!' Gene shouted, snapping his fingers in front of her face as they finally reached CID, shrugging their coats off and lighting more cigarettes.

Alex jumped and shook her head, as if to free the smoke from both her nostrils and her mind. 'What?'

'Nothing, just checking yer haven't got brain freeze and blacked out.' Gene replied, turning to the rest of the office as Alex made her way around her desk, sinking with relief into the chair. But before Gene could speak, Viv came in with Milly who seemed to have been crying.

'Um...Guv?'

Gene twisted round to take in Milly's tear stained face and puffy eyes. 'Milly, yer alright?' He asked, crouching down to her level.

Milly swallowed and released Viv's hand, falling forward and clumsily hugging him. 'That man came back again...the nasty man, the one you talked to me about this morning.' She sobbed as Gene hugged her back, still awkwardly.

Alex, hearing the little girl's words, jumped up and went over to Viv. 'Viv, what did she say? Pete Crowley's been here?' She asked, glancing at Milly who was now being given pink wafers by Shaz.

Viv nodded. 'Yeah, we had to get uniform to take him out; he was shouting the odds all over the place. Saying he had nothing to do with Samantha Jones' murder. Right tosser if you ask me.'

Alex nodded. 'Right, ok, thanks, Viv. If he comes again, tell him to come see us, yeah?'

'No problem, see you later, Ma'am.' Viv replied, leaving the office and returning to his desk.

'What was that about, then?' Gene asked, ambling over from where Milly was now sat with Shaz, looking a little happier.

'I think we should stay here for the rest of today, Gene.' Alex told him, forcing her hands into her tight pockets.

'Why?'

'Viv says Pete Crowley came in, threatening and saying he had nothing to do with Samantha's murder.'

Gene pouted and lit another cigarette. 'Hm...not what an innocent man does is it, Bolly?'

She shook her head in agreement. 'No...anyway, I think we've already got him alerted, so questioning Marley's just going to send him mad. I think we send Chris and Ray on some surveillance, see what they can find out.'

'Good idea, Bolls. Christopher, Raymoundo!' Gene barked, causing them to come over as they always did.

'What, Guv?'

'We're not going ter question Marley today, but I want you two on surveillance, stay there till about five, then yer can bugger of home, alright?'

Chris nodded. 'Right-o, Guv. See you tomorrow, then.' He said, before he and Ray disappeared, both of them with cigarettes hanging out of their mouths.

* * *

'Ma'am, since we're not doing much more today, do you want me to take Milly home. I can take her to see E.T, she's begging to see it again, then she could stay at mine if you want?' Shaz offered, though Alex knew she had an ulterior motive.

'Um...go on then, does Milly want to?'

At that point, Milly came running over, she seemed to be over her slight upset from earlier on. 'Yeah! Can I? Please, Alex!'

Alex smiled at the enthusiastic little girl. 'Of course you can, do you want to go now, yeah?'

Milly nodded. 'Ok, bye!'

'Bye.' Alex replied, waving to Milly as she left with Shaz and then almost jumping as she heard a voice in her ear.

'What's all that about, Bolly?'

She turned and smothered a blush, seeing how close he was stood. 'Oh...Shaz is taking Milly for tonight; they're going to see E.T again.'

Gene nodded and ignored the sudden realisation that they would have the house to themselves that night.

_Not appropriate, Gene you idiot. As if she'd actually want you anyway, she was just drunk._

'Ok...well I'm gonna write up what we've done so far, which won't take long. You can do whatever Psychology crap you want to.' He told her, walking off without a reply and shutting himself in his office, more likely set on a glass of whisky than what he had said.

Alex sighed and smiled slightly. He had called it Psychology. She sat down at her desk and stared blankly at the case file, trying to look for something that would stand out. But her brain was fuzzy; all she could think of was the night before, why was it so shrouded in mystery? What had she done?

But also, thoughts of Gene kept somehow swimming to the forefront of her mind, how close he had been stood just then, his manly scent, smoke, whisky and something else...his aftershave, perhaps? She liked it, whatever it was.

And then, something stirred in her memory. The smoke blocking the memories cleared, little by little. And she remembered.

* * *

'_You want me, I know you do, how long is this going to go on...? I'm giving you what you want, you can have me...just take it.'_

'_No, Alex.'_

'_You sleep in here; I'll sleep in your room. I'm not doing this, go to sleep, Bolls.'_

* * *

The words she had whispered so seductively in his ear came flooding back to her, making her eyes grow wide and she totally forgot the file in front of her. It was only now that she also noticed, everyone else had gone home. The only people here were her, and Gene. Not good.

There was no breathing, no talking, no tapping of a typewriter. Just her in the silence and him in his office. Nothing but the ticking off the clock to accompany the sound of her breathing, which had suddenly just got faster, her tempo increasing.

_Oh...shit._

She had offered herself to him, told him he could have her, asked him, practically begged him to make love to her. She must have been drunk, very drunk. But he had refused her, he had resisted and told her quite firmly, 'no.' He had been Gene Hunt again, and done the right bloody thing. Thank God.

But then she found herself thinking, did she really just do it because she was so drunk? Was she sure there wasn't a part of her that _did_ want him like that? She wandered back through her jumbled memories, each scarred by the loss of her daughter, but she found them all the same. The cupboard, the evidence room...all the other times where they had been so close...had she not wanted to kiss him? To feel his lips on hers, taste his breath on her tongue...hold him close...

'Shit.' She muttered. Because she discovered that the answer to those questions was, yes, bloody hell yes. She wanted him...but did he want her?

But the thing that shined above all else for her was that he had said no. He had told her to go to sleep. Because she remembered that look in his eyes, his moment of indecision. He had wanted her, she was almost sure of that. But he had done the right thing.

Because he was her Gene Hunt.

* * *

Gene looked up to see the door open and Alex slip in, gazing at him intently. 'Just come in, Bolly. Don't bother knocking.' He said sarcastically, stubbing out his cigarette and standing up. 'Want ter go home?'

Alex bit her lip...did she really have the courage to go through with this? 'Um...Gene?'

Gene stopped in his tracks, he knew that voice. She was going to say something important. He looked up at her and saw her expression, the way she was looking at him...

_Oh shit, she's remembered. _

'Yes?' He barely managed to force out, dreading what came next.

'I...remember, last night...I got drunk and I...' she couldn't say it, just couldn't. 'Oh God, Gene, I'm so sorry.' She finally said, looking down at the linoleum floor, swathed in light from the one lamp on his desk. It was silent for a while, nothing but them and the small, dimly lit office.

'It's...alright, Bolly.' Gene eventually replied, not really knowing quite what to say. The way the low light was glowing off her hair and face made her look ten times sexier...it wasn't helping matters.

She looked up again, piercing his gaze with her own. His breath caught as she stepped forward to him; there were only inches between them. Two inches of pure temptation...was it that hot in here before?

'Why did you do it, Gene?' She murmured, looking at him with wide eyes. 'You said no...but you could have so easily...' She trailed off, again not finding the courage or strength to say it.

'Because I wouldn't take advantage of yer, not when you were drunk, Bolly.' He replied, finding the words surprisingly easy to say.

She smiled slightly and before he knew it, she had brought her hands up to rest on his chest and had stepped just that little bit closer. Oh no, she was closer now, even closer than before. The temptation was beginning to gnaw away at his resistance, the turbulent desire pent up inside him already pulsing through his blood.

'Gene...thank you.' She whispered. And then it happened.

* * *

He didn't even do anything, he didn't think. In a matter of seconds her lips were on his, or was it his on hers? He didn't know, and he didn't care. All he cared about was the warmth of her lips on his as he responded to her kiss.

Bringing his hands up he wrapped one tightly around her waist, pulling her closer to him, wanting and needing her closer. He brought the other up to her face, resting it on her neck and tilting her head back. But then all the desire burst out, throbbing in their hearts and boiling the blood under their skin.

He moaned and pushed her backwards against the wall, pressing his body to hers, seeking the closeness he had been deprived of for so long as he ran his tongue along her bottom lip. He poured all the desire, all the passion and love he had locked away for so long into her, their tongues battling for dominance, her hands running over his back, over his chest and back up to his hair again. He skimming her hips with his hands, and running back to her shoulders as he put another burst on passion into the kiss, savouring every last glorious minute.

They eventually broke away, breathless and gasping for breath, both of their heads spinning.

'I want you, Alex. I wondered how long it would take yer to figure it out.' He murmured, placing soft kisses along her jawline.

She smiled, licking her lips where she could still taste him. 'Well, you learn something new every day.'

* * *

***Bites lip nervously* How did I do? I've never written anything particularly steamy before, so please tell me what you thought! Thanks for reading! **

* * *


	15. Anagrams

**Hi! Wow, thanks for all your lovely reviews for last chapter! But I do have some bad news, I can't give you cookies, or brownies, or muffins this chapter, because I have a bad cough and didn't want to bake, as I didn't think giving you germy baking was a good idea! But I will give you a massive thank you...a Quattro each! Tee hee. X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes, which is unfortunate, I can just imagine arriving at school in a Quattro! =D**

**Chapter 15 – Anagrams**

* * *

Gene and Alex somehow made their way inside the house; Gene kicking the door shut behind him as his mouth once again claimed hers. Placing two hands firmly on her hips he pushed her backwards on to the stairs, causing her to end up half lying-half sitting on them as he leant over her. Planting chaste kisses along her jaw line, the corner of her mouth, her neck, he moved his hands to her shirt, pulling the top button undone.

As he kissed her passionately once again her hands struggled to come up to his chest, but somehow she stopped her head from spinning and pulled back, pushing him firmly away, but he still remained hovering a few inches over her.

'What?' He growled, intensity in his eyes. He wanted her. Now.

'Not here.' She panted, turning her head and looking up the stairs. 'Properly, the bedroom. Then you can do whatever you want with me.' She replied, her chest still heaving from his vigorous kisses.

'That a promise, Bolly?'

She smiled and nodded as he pulled her to her feet and they somehow stumbled up the stairs and she was pushed through his bedroom door. Alex fumbled for the belt on his trousers as she moaned against his ever demanding mouth and was shoved back onto the bed, Gene quickly following, passion and want boiling under his skin.

* * *

Gene woke to see Alex gazing intently at him, he smiled at her and propped himself up on one arm. 'What yer thinking, Bolly?'

'I'm wondering if we'll get complaints from the neighbours.' She replied cheekily, tilting her head towards his.

'What do yer mean?'

She laughed. 'I'm surprised if they didn't hear you on the next street, let alone next door.'

Gene looked at her for a moment and then growled. 'Sod the next door neighbours, Bolly.' Before pinning her against the mattress and kissing her to an inch of her life again.

Alex's mind wandered as she responded just as fiercely, would she ever get tired of this? Of him? No, she thought was the answer. It was just typical though, she would meet the perfect man twenty six years in her past.

* * *

'We need to get up, Bolly.' Gene murmured as the morning light began to seep in through the windows and reflect of their skin.

'Do we now? Well...I'd like to stay here in bed all day.'

Gene chuckled. 'Don't think I'm not thinking the same thing, but we've got ter go, before the neighbours come round with the pitchforks.'

She laughed and climbed out of bed rolling her eyes at his, 'nice arse, Bolly!'

'I'm going to get dressed-'

'Oh, that's no good.'

She turned to him, 'shut up, Gene. I'm going to get dressed, then we better head into work and see what Chris and Ray got up to with the surveillance last night.'

'Alright, but don't tell 'em what we got up to last night.'

Alex pouted thoughtfully. 'Hm...I might do actually; it'd be worth it just to see the looks on their faces.'

'No!' Gene sat up properly and looked at her. 'Alex, I _order_ you, as your DCI not to tell anyone about last night. Understand?'

She smiled and went over to him, bending over to whisper in his ear. 'Yes, _officer_.' She then quickly left the room and went to get up.

'Bloody, sexy, mental woman.' Gene muttered, getting out of bed himself.

* * *

'Christopher! Raymoundo! What have yer got fer me?' Gene barked as he usually did as they entered CID.

Chris and Ray came scuttling over, fags in hand. 'We saw 'em, Guv!'

'Saw what Chris? Speak properly!' Gene replied, snatching the cigarettes from their hands and chucking them in the nearest ash tray.

'Well, we saw 'em unloading stuff off the continent, like Crester said.' Chris said, glancing longingly at the cigarette that was now slowly going out in the glass ashtray.

Gene pouted and glanced at Alex, then quickly looked away again causing a smug smile to play on her face. 'What sort of stuff? Booze, fags, jewellery?' He questioned, his skin tingling from where Alex was stood next to him.

Ray shrugged and glanced suspiciously at Alex, confused by her smug grin and knowing eyes...was Chris maybe right? They weren't...? He shook the idea from his head and concentrated on replying. 'Dunno, Guv. All we saw were cardboard boxes, loads of them, and about half of Marley's crew there, no sign of the slimy bugger though.'

'Well of course not, it's a typical scheme. The big man gets his henchmen to do the dirty work for him, while he sits away from the centre of the web in a room somewhere. It was the same with the assassination of Franz Ferdinand. Colonel Api stayed away while Gavrilo and the rest of them shot him; it's the same sort of thing.' Alex said, causing Ray to scowl at her.

'What the hell are you talking about?' Ray asked, looking at Gene for support, but support wasn't what he got.

'DS Carling, DI Drake is your senior officer and you'll pay her some respect. Besides, she's right. I think we better go talk to Marley.' Gene told him, disappearing to go get his coat.

'Um, Chris, where's Milly and Shaz?' Alex asked, casting her eyes around the office.

'Oh, Shaz phoned me, said they'd be here in about an hour.'

Alex nodded. 'Oh right, that's Ok. Um...could I have another look at that note we found in Crowley's diary?'

Ray handed it to her and slumped off back to his desk, a grimace plastered on his face.

'Thanks, um...Chris, what boat were they unloading off last night?'

'Err...The Blacksmith, I think. It's newly finished. Why?'

Alex shook her head, grasping the note firmly in her hand. 'No reason, I'm just going to have another look at this.' She told them, sitting down at her desk and frowning at the two words on the paper. As she picked up a pen, Ray leant over and whispered to Chris.

'Did you see the way the Guv and DI Drake were acting, it's weird.'

Chris shrugged. 'I dunno, weren't paying much attention. But yeah, him defending her was definitely weird.'

Ray nodded and glanced at Alex who now seemed to be writing on the note. 'And he never says she's right, never. What the hell is going on?'

But at that moment, Gene emerged from his office. 'Right, Bolly-Knickers, you ready?'

Alex looked up and got up from her desk, walking around to where he was stood. 'This note, I think it's the one Marley passes to his workmen to tell them which boat's bringing the goods in, look. It's an anagram.'

Gene took the note from her and looked down at where she'd changed it.

_Smith. Lathbeck._

_The Blacksmith._

* * *

***plays dramatic music* What did you think? Please tell me in a.... (drum roll) review!!!! Thanks for reading. X =D**


	16. Developments

**Hello my un-royal subjects. (Tee Hee) Thanks for all the lovely reviews last chapter, I'm still baffled, yet brilliantly happy at how well this story has done, I never expected it to be so popular! So thank you! Here's the next chapter, enjoy! A bottle of house rubbish for yer all!**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes, quick take the house rubbish before the BBC realise I stole it! =D**

**Chapter 16 – Developments**

* * *

'Bollocks.' Gene simply grunted, shoving the altered note back into her hand. 'Nothing's ever simple anymore is it, Bolly?'

Alex grimaced, but before she could reply the door opened and in came Shaz and Milly.

'Gene!' Milly exclaimed, running towards Gene and reaching up, Gene bent and picked her up just as he always did.

'Swear he's turning soft.' Ray muttered, breathing out a wisp of smoke from between his lips before stubbing the cigarette out and tossing it away as he watched them with some sort of puzzlement upon is his face.

'Shaz took me to see E.T, then we went home and had pizza and pink wafers, then I had to go to bed, but this morning she'd run out of bread so we went to a cafe for a bacon sandwich and it was really nice!' She explained all in a rush, beaming at him and Alex.

'What did you and Alex do?'

Alex couldn't help it; she burst out laughing, glancing at Gene.

'What?' Milly asked innocently, observing how Gene was giving Alex the death glare.

'Nothing, Milly, nothing. It sounded like you had a good time, yeah?' She asked, changing the subject smoothly as she felt Gene relax beside her.

'Yeah, are you two doing police stuff again today?' Milly inquired, looking to Gene for answers.

'Sorry, Milly, got ter be done. Yer like Shaz, don't yer?'

Milly nodded. 'She tells me about films and shows me things, like the walkman.'

Alex smiled. 'Ok, well tomorrow's Saturday, so we'll go to the park.' She promised, watching as Milly skipped off back to Shaz.

'Once yer done making happy family arrangements, do yer want to come talk to Marley?'

'Yes, I'm coming. I'm not the one she's attached to though.' Alex reminded him as she grabbed her leather jacket.

Gene just grunted and looked back around the office, why was it there was quite a few people in CID, but they just never seemed to be doing anything? Useless sods.

'Right, me and Drakey are off to grill that bastard Marley about this note and whatever he was offloading from the continent. Can you useless lot have another crack at Samantha Jones' neighbours? Yer police officers, not nurses, if they don't want to see yer, tell 'em you don't give a shit and break the bloody door down! Understood?' He barked with his usual force, surveying his kingdom.

'Yes, Guv!' The room chorused, most of them getting up and appearing to do something.

'Right, ready Bolly-Knickers?' He asked, turning to her.

She nodded. 'Yep, ready.'

'Let's fire up the Quattro.'

But as soon as they were clear of the station and had reached the car, Gene quickly looked around before pushing Alex against the car and pressing his lips to hers, immediately sliding his tongue into her mouth and holding onto her wrists against the car door.

'Bloody hell Gene, someone might have seen that.' Alex giggled when he pulled back a minute later and got in the car.

'I checked first, Bolly. It's just I've been wanting ter do that since we got in this morning.' He told her, slamming his foot down on the accelerator and disappearing in a screech of tires.

She raised her eyebrows. 'Really now?'

'Right, now if he makes a move on yer, don't have a go when I floor him, stamp on his face, run him through a paper shredder and wrap him up in newspaper.'

Alex frowned at him. 'Gene, it'll be fine.' She said as they got out of the car, heading across the dock to the familiar mobile that Terry Marley was currently lazily sat in.

'Just don't go in there like a bull in a china shop.' Were Alex's last words before Gene charged into the office.

'Hello, is this the china shop?!'

Marley's haunting, gaunt face snapped up in surprise as he glared at Gene and then looked appreciatively at Alex. 'Changed your mind DI Drake?'

'Shut yer filthy mouth, bastard. You've been telling a few lies.'

Marley cocked his head on one sighed and made a face. 'What are you insinuating, Mr Hunt?'

Gene took a menacing step towards him over the murky floor, leaving Alex stood back a little cautiously. 'Yer importing sod knows what in from the continent, and we've checked yer records, yer've no license. So Terence Marley, yer nicked.' He grunted, pulling out some handcuffs, and in one smooth move, kneeing him where it hurts and kicking him onto the floor, snapping the cuffs around his scrawny wrists.

* * *

'Get him in the cells fer me, Viv. Now.' Gene ordered, shoving a still cuffed Terry Marley towards Viv and dusting his hands off.

'Nice work, Guv.' Alex complimented as they walked back to CID.

'Let's just 'ope the same can be said fer this lot. Let's see what they've got.' Gene replied, opening the doors and looking around at the considerably emptier office.

'Christopher! Where's everyone gone?' Gene asked, finding the quiet strangely eerie.

Chris shrugged. 'Dunno, we got ter talk to some neighbours though. Apparently Samantha started locking the door even when she was in, and started shutting all the windows about a week before she died.'

Alex frowned and took a step forward. 'Who said this?'

'Next door neighbour, boss – Ma'am. Said she was getting all protective and paranoid. Can I go, I promised Shazza I'd take her out tonight?'

Alex smiled and put her hands in her pockets. 'Yeah, go on Chris. Thanks.'

'No problem Ma'am. See yer tomorrow Guv.' With that Chris left the office, leaving Alex and Gene alone, noticing that Milly was sat on his desk with a magazine.

'Sounds like she'd been threatened.' Alex said, turning to Gene.

'What makes yer say that?'

'Well, if someone had threatened me, I'd be a lot more protective of Molly and I'd start locking the doors and so on.'

Gene shrugged. 'Makes sense, I s'pose.' He said, before walking over and saying things to Milly that Alex couldn't quite hear.

Molly. Her daughter, Molly. Her daughter who was now motherless in 2008 while she was stuck here in 1982. The pain of never seeing her daughter again drove a spear through her soul, just Alex presumed would always happen whenever she thought of her.

She looked over at Gene who was talking softly to Milly, occasionally glancing up at her, wearing that sexy pout of his.

Yes, she was stuck here in 1982, but stuck here with him? Well, that wasn't so bad.

* * *

**The stuff with Samantha Jones' murder should be picking up next chapter. Hope you liked this one, and I was wondering, if any of you like Dr Who, I've just started a new Dr Who story, called 'They Never Listen' so if you want to check that out, feel free! Please review, extra bottle of house rubbish for reviewing! X =D**

**P.S - Sorry if this doesn't have horizontal rulers, has decided to play up again.**


	17. Jammy Bastard

**Hi, sorry about the delay for this chapter, you'd think that because I'm on half term, I'd have more time for writing, right? Wrong. My lovely (not) geography teacher gave me a massive project to do; I have French revision, maths homework and art homework to do. Goodie. Ok, enough of me moaning, here's your next chapter! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes, but I do own this story! Yay! =D**

**Chapter 17 – Jammy Bastard**

* * *

'So Bolly, what do yer think?' Gene asked her as he sat down on the sofa after putting Milly to bed. Alex turned her head to look at him before leaning over and resting her head on his shoulder. As Gene wound his arm around her waist, he wondered if he'd ever get used to this. _Cuddling_ wasn't exactly something the Gene Genie did. Shagging, yes. Cuddling, no. So why did this feel so wonderfully right?

Because she was Alex, and it would always feel right. Just as last night had been the most amazing night of his life and just as he had been driven crazy by her as soon as he saw her.

'What do I think about what?' Alex asked, bringing her hand up to trace random, abstract patterns over his chest as the light from the only lamp played in her hair. She glanced over at the patio doors where they had forgotten to draw the curtains and she could now see a reflection of where they were sat...they looked...like a married couple, but at the same time, there was something very sexy about it.

'The case, who do yer think did it? Killed her.'

She pouted slightly and thought for a while. 'I don't know, Gene, to be honest. All I know is there's something going on with Marley and this ship thing if his, Pete Crowley's mixed up in it and it's all just a mess.'

'Yer don't think Crowley killed her, do yer?'

Alex sat up and frowned at him, instantly missing his warmth. 'Crowley? I don't think so Gene, he might not be straight, and there might have been something funny going on before she died...but to be honest, I don't think he's got it in him.'

'I've warned you about underestimating men, Bolls.' Gene growled, moving over to her and pinning her back against the sofa, so her head hit the headrest and he was laid on top of her.

'You're hardly very scary.' Alex murmured as he gripped her wrists tightly so she couldn't move and began placing a line of kisses just under her jaw. Suddenly, he gripped her tighter and looked up at her face.

'You might want to reconsider that one, Bolly.' He told her, moving to hold his face centimetres from her own.

'Ok then, you're very scary, Mr Hunt.' She replied, reaching up and kissing him quickly.

'More like it.' He grunted as her hands came up to wrap around his torso, pulling him closer and sending his blood rushing downwards. He let out a moan as his mouth once again collided with hers and he moved to kiss her more deeply, arching over her yet still pinning her down with his legs.

'You'll get bored of me soon.' Alex whispered when he pulled back and moved his attentions further down her body.

'Not likely.' Was the last thing he said that night.

* * *

'That is the third time they've come in together.' Ray huffed, eyeing Alex suspiciously as she walked away from Gene and to her desk while Gene prepared to bark out the orders.

'Right, you useless numbskulls, you're gonna do some actual work today! Christopher, Raymoundo! I want yer down those bloody god forsaken docks and turning 'em inside out! I want to know what the hell is in those boxes and I don't care how many men's chances of having kids you ruin in the bloody process! Just get it done! And Shaz, I want yer to try seeing if forensics has got anything more on the body, they might have bothered to check the stomach contents or her blood – what was left of it. Me and Frilly-Knickers here are off to see where Pete Crowley got to, slimy bastard.'

'We are?' Alex asked, picking up her coat that she had just removed.

'Yes, we are, Bolly.' Gene affirmed, looking around to see Chris and Ray scarpering off to the docks 'search warrant' in hand and Shaz making her way down to forensics, that just left them and Milly.

'Do I have to stay here on my own? I thought you didn't work Saturdays, you said we could go to the park.' Milly said, grumpily nibbling on yet another pink wafer as she sat on Alex's desk, her legs swinging.

Alex smiled at the innocent girl and crouched down to her height, Gene appreciating the view from behind. 'We will go to the park at lunchtime, Milly. I'll buy you an ice cream and everything.' Alex promised, her eyes wide as she realised her blue eyes were a similar shape to Molly's and she once again felt that twist of a knife in her chest as the loss of her daughter hurt her again.

'But for now, do yer want to home those Pong skills with Viv, yeah?' Gene suggested, picking her up and pushing the hair back from her eyes.

'Ok, but as long we do get to go to the park, I haven't been in ages. Mummy stopped going out a few weeks ago, we'd just stay at home all day and watch telly. It was weird, I didn't like it, I got bored. But Mummy kept going over to the window and looking out, then checking the door.'

Gene and Alex exchanged furtive glances at yet another of Milly's childish insights into her mother's death was revealed to them. 'It's alright, Milly, we'll go ter the park. We'll see yer in a couple of hours, ok?'

Milly nodded and hopped down, wandering over to Viv and taking control of the computer as he watched in fascination.

'See ya, Guv.' Viv said as they made their way outside and to the mighty Quattro. Outside the skies were grey and overcast, a stormy wind whipping up around them and blowing the leaves and newspapers that littered the streets down the pavement and out of sight.

'Nice day I see.' Alex remarked once they were in the warmth and comfort of Gene's car.

'Bloody English weather.' He muttered as the car sprung into life and roared away, seatbelts flapping out of the closed doors.

* * *

'Come on Crowley, we know yer in there! Just open the bloody door or it won't just be a punch in the gut this time!' Gene roared, pounding on the door with such force it had begun vibrating. 'Right, big bad wolf's here and he's blowing yer poxy door down!' He finally shouted, with a final shove the door gave in and they burst into the dingy, damp house, looking around for Pete Crowley.

Alex's eyes fell on the locked bathroom door and she made her way over to it. 'Shit, Guv. Go check the back, see if he's made a runner for it.'

Gene quickly opened the back door and poked his head out before coming back in. 'Nah, no window on the bathroom, want me ter break it down?' He offered, preparing to start shoving the wooden door.

Alex shook her head. 'Let's try things my way, shall we?'

Gene rolled his eyes but nevertheless leant back on one of the cleaner parts of the wall and watched as she performed some of her 'psycho-twattery', as he called it.

'Mr Crowley, me and Mr Hunt merely wish to talk to you a little more about your ex-wife's death, I was wondering if you'd come out and answer a few of our questions?'

'Go back ter yer posh bullocks and leave me alone!' Came Pete Crowley's raspy voice from inside the bathroom.

Alex sighed. 'Mr Crowley, if you'd prefer it you can answer my questions from in there we can do that, if you'd like?'

There was silence for a few minutes before the door slowly opened a little way, revealing Pete Crowley's haggard face. He'd got worse. His eyes were even more sunken than before, if that was possible, he was now in bad need of a shave and he looked like he hadn't slept in years. His rough skin was sallow and had a yellow tinge to it, he looked...almost dead. Like all the life had been beaten out of him, drawn from his soul and hung out to dry.

'What d'ya want ter know?' He grunted, keeping the door between him and Alex, with just his face visible though a small opening.

'I want to know why you started going around to see Samantha a few weeks before she died. Apparently Milly would go into her room and you used to talk to your ex-wife, is this true?'

He seemed to shrug noncommittally. 'Could be, don't really matter though, does it?'

Alex put her head on one side and crossed her arms over her chest. 'I think it matters, Mr Crowley. I want to know what you talked to Samantha about.'

'It was nothing, I promise! I just went round there to see how she was doing, that's all!' Pete said defensively, staring at Alex with hard eyes.

'Oh yeah? Well guess what, Uncle Gene doesn't believe yer! Do yer want to tell us the truth, or come down the station, you can share a cell with that good fer nothing boss of yours!'

Suddenly, Pete's expression changed at Gene's words. 'What you arrested Terry for?!' He asked, glancing nervously at Alex and opening the door just that little bit wider.

'He's been shipping things in off the continent and he hasn't got a license, and I think I'm right in saying you know something about these shipments!' Gene told him abruptly, taking a threatening step towards him.

Pete began shaking his head profusely and denying it. 'I don't! I don't know anything, I'm just a nobody, going about my business, I promise!'

Alex sighed again. 'Mr Crowley, could you please just tell us what you were talking to Samantha Jones about, because whatever it was, it's important.'

'Fine.' Pete huffed, glaring at Gene menacingly before turning back to Alex. 'I needed money, you've seen this place, I can barely keep myself afloat anymore, everything's just got too expensive...can't afford to hardly eat...Terry said he couldn't give me a pay rise...I needed to do something, so I went and asked Samantha.'

Alex frowned as she looked at Pete's hands, they had started shaking along with his bottom lip, looking in his eyes, she knew there wasn't something quite right...but she didn't know what, whatever it was, he didn't look quite there...

'And did she give you money?'

He shook his head again, his eyes not focusing and his hands trembling all the more. 'No, no...she said I didn't deserve it...I'd never helped her out with Milly...told me ter get out of her life...but I went back, I kept going back, I had to...had to get the money...needed money...' He was shaking uncontrollably now, his lip trembling and hands twitching strangely.

'Mr Crowley-' Alex took a concerned step towards him, but as she did so, Pete suddenly blinked and his body slumped sideways, he fell to the mucky floor with a thud, his eyes closed and hands still twitching by his limp body.

'Ring an ambulance.' Alex instructed, kneeling down next to the collapsed man. 'Mr Crowley, can you hear me? Just say yes if you can.'

Silence. He just lay there, not moving apart from his still trembling hands and the occasional twitch of his leg, he seemed to have had some sort of fit.

'I've rung the ambulance, they'll be 'ere in a minute, what's wrong with him?'

Alex got up and brushed off her jeans, there seemed to be a century's worth of dust on the floor. 'I don't know, he seems to have had some fit of some sort, he just started shaking and-'

'Yeah I know, Bolly, I was 'ere.'

Alex nodded and looked back at Pete, the twitching had pretty much stopped now and he just laid there, his body limp.

* * *

'Nurses said they'd tell us as soon as they knew.' Gene told Alex as they finally got back to the station.

'Ok, right, we better keep Milly on that promise and take her down the park, then we can see what happens when we get back.'

Gene nodded and agreed. 'Yep.' He looked around furtively before grabbing Alex's wrist and pulling her to him, wrapping his arms tightly around her waist, one hand slipping down over her backside.

'Gene, someone'll see us.' Alex muttered, but Gene didn't reply. He just pressed his lips to hers and drove her back against the wall again, causing her to moan and open her mouth as he slipped his tongue in, delighting in the taste of her again as she ran her hands over his broad chest and down over his hips, then back up to his shoulders.

They broke apart, gasping for breath, but it was too late. About two metres away from them, Ray and Chris were stood, gawping at their two senior officers.

Ray's mouth opened and closed several times before he raised a finger and pointed between the two incredulously, he looked as if he might faint at any moment. 'You...two...Guv?'

Whereas Chris manage to compose some sort of sentence and simply said. 'You jammy bastard.'

* * *

**Quite a long one there, hope you liked it and please review! Bottle of house rubbish and some of Luigi's steak and chips pizza goes out to all reviewers! (You may throw it straight in the bin if you like) Tee hee, thanks for reading as always! X =D**


	18. It's Always Drugs

**Hi, thanks for all your lovely reviews last chapter, keep them coming! Tee hee, also not been mentioning, did at the start, but this story is dedicated to Blond Velma for all her help, support and general craziness! Check out her stories, they're fantastic! Happy Reading!**

**Disclaimer – Ashes to Ashes belongs to the BBC, I own nothing but Milly and my plot, well actually, they're quite big things, so I'm happy! =D**

**Chapter 18 – It's Always Drugs**

* * *

Ray just stared at his two senior officers, completely dumbfounded. Gene's hand was still resting on her hip as they looked at him and Chris in shock.

He shook his head. 'No way, Guv...you two aren't...._together_?' He asked warily, looking as though the whole idea made him physically want to throw up.

'You're screwing DI Drake?' Chris asked, looking just as stunned as Ray as his eyes darted between the pair.

Alex smirked slightly and stepped forward, decided to have a little fun. 'Yes, he is...have you got a problem, Chris? Ray? Because I'll tell you what, I don't...in fact...it's absolutely _mind-blowing_.' Her voice twisted around the last word with a smirk and she had to bite back a laugh as their eyes widened.

Ray shook his head again and stepped back. 'This is a joke...you two?' He looked at Gene now, addressing only him. 'Come on, Guv...a shag then toss her out, I can understand that...but this? Has she knocked yer on the head, Guv?'

'No Raymoundo, I have not been hit on the head! Now, if you don't mind, I think we should talk about something other than who I shag, alright with you?! For example, did yer find anything at them docks?!' He barked, stepping forward so he was next to Alex again, he reached around subtly and squeezed the back of her thigh, his lips quirking upwards as he saw a smile cross her face.

'Oh, yeah...well we forced our way in there like you said, and we found the boxes, then this bloke came and tried to pull us away, but we knocked him out and went back to the boxes, Ray opened one with a pen-knife, and you wouldn't believe it, Guv-'

'Get to the bloody point, Christopher!' Gene shouted, all the time watching Alex out of the corner of his eye – he had begun tracing idle patterns on the back of her thigh now, unbeknownst to the other two.

'Well, it were drugs, Guv. Cocaine, we took some samples then got the plods to go confiscate the rest of it.'

Alex nodded, trying desperately to ignore Gene fingers running over the back of her leg, sending shivers down her spine. 'Cocaine, right. We'll go question Terry Marley after lunch, did Shaz find anything?' Her eyes suddenly grew wide as Gene moved his hand up to her backside, still tracing abstract patterns and she wasn't really listening in too much detail as his fingers ran over the back of her hip, then back down to her arse again. Shit, he was good at this.

'Um...yeah, not much though...turns out she was hardly eating anything a few days before, her stomach was empty and there were signs of malnutrition – like she'd been starving herself, Ma'am.'

She nodded again, her mouth tightening in order to prevent her smiling as Gene stopped tracing patterns and instead just rested his hand firmly over her backside...she mentally made a correction, he was _really_ good at this.

'Right, ok...well it looks like she was being threatened then, probably got so worried and stressed out.'

Chris nodded too. 'Yeah...can we go now?' He asked, they still hadn't noticed what Gene was doing.

'Yeah, get lost.' Gene affirmed, watching as they disappeared from view before turning to Alex and quickly removing his hand. 'You alright, Bolls? You look a little distracted.' He quipped, playing the innocent gentleman.

'I was a bit, you see, some very naughty man kept touching my arse, the nerve of him. I'll report him if I catch him doing it again.' She replied in a low voice, looking up at him through her eyelashes.

Gene looked at her, the slight pout of her lips, her desire-filled eyes... 'It's difficult when you look that gorgeous, Bolly.' He said, before putting his hand back and pressing his lips to hers. Alex responded eagerly, slipping her hands underneath his jacket and tracing over his chest as his tongue slipped inside her mouth, once again earning a wanton moan from the back of her throat.

She pulled back, 'I'd stop there if I were you, Mr Hunt...before you get too carried away.' She whispered in his ear before taking step back from him.

'Yer gonna be the death of me, Bolls.'

She grinned. 'Oh dear...come on, we better go get Milly.'

Gene nodded and followed her down the corridor, his eyes never straying from her backside.

'Stop staring at my arse, Gene!' She ordered before they entered CID.

'Why? Am I not allowed to?' He asked, opening the door and letting her slip past him. She didn't answer, instead walking over to where Milly sat, waiting for them.

'Hey, Milly...still want to go to the park?'

The little girl's eyes lit up and she jumped off the desk, picking up her coat. 'Yeah! Can I have an ice cream, too?!'

Gene bent down and picked her up again once she'd put her coat on. 'Sure yer can, come on.'

* * *

'You go get the ice creams, Bolly. I'm gonna take Milly on the swings.' Gene told her, handing over a five pound note.

'Ok, see you in a minute.' She replied, taking the money before turning and going over to the ice cream van, wondering why on earth Milly wanted ice cream in this weather.

'Hi love, what can I get'cha?' The young lad in the ice cream van asked, looking down at her.

'Three 99s please.' Alex said, handing over the money and taking the ice cream from him.

'There yer are, here's yer change.' He said with a smile, handing her a handful of coins.

'Thanks.'

It was only when Alex had reached Gene and handed him and Molly their ice creams, did Alex notice there was a small piece of paper in her hand along with the coins. She frowned and unfolded it, sighing when she saw there was a telephone number written there.

'Bloody pervy youth.' She muttered, shoving the piece of paper in the bin and hoping he could see.

'What's that, Bolls?' Gene asked, coming over with Milly as he licked at his ice cream.

'Nothing.' Alex said, the last thing she wanted was Gene to stride over there and beat the life out of him.

Gene was going to reply, but at that moment, Alex's tongue began winding its way around her ice cream, disappearing into her mouth to reappear again, to lick some ice cream from her bottom lip. Alex noticed him staring and looked up at him. 'What?'

He shook his head. 'Nothing, Bolls.' He told her with a smile, looking down at Milly who had just about finished her ice cream. 'Done already, Milly?'

Milly grinned and nodded, wiping her sticky face with the napkin before looking up at them, her face one of evident curiosity. 'Are you my new Mummy and Daddy?' She asked eventually, after they had all finished their ice creams.

Alex bit her lip softly and crouched down so she was at Milly's height. 'No, we're not your Mummy and Daddy, because you had a Mummy, and she loved you very much.'

Milly nodded. 'You know...I want to stay with you and Gene...can you look after me forever, because I've heard about these places for children who don't have Mummies or Daddies, and I really don't want to go to them...please can I stay with you? I won't get in the way.' She pleaded, her eyes welling up a little as she mentioned the orphanages.

Alex smiled and reached out to smooth down her hair, pulling her into a hug. 'It's alright, Milly.' She whispered to the little girl. 'We'll look after you, its ok.'

But inside, Alex was fighting a raging battle, could she really replace her own daughter with Milly? It felt almost like a sort of betrayal, true, she knew she couldn't turn back, that she was stuck here in the 80s...but could she replace Molly like that? Suppose she called her Molly by mistake?

But then another image came to Alex, a different child, with blonde hair, perhaps and Gene's sea green eyes, too..._their _child. Could she ever replace Molly that way either? But then a little voice told her that she wasn't replacing anyone, not really, she was just...moving on.

'We'll look after you, Milly. It's alright.' She whispered again, pulling back and using her napkin to wipe Milly's damp face.

The little girl smiled. 'Thank you.' She said, hugging Gene too.

At that moment, Gene felt a vibration in his pocket and he pulled out his ancient radio, from which Chris' voice was coming, walking away a little, Alex watched as Gene spoke into it, before turning back to them.

'They've got news from the hospital, Crowley had a fit because of a drug overdose, three guesses what drug.' He told Alex grimly.

Alex sighed and stood up, picking Milly up too. 'Cocaine?'

Gene nodded, a grimace plastered on his face. 'It's always drugs, sex or women, Bolls. Always. Drugs this time, by the look of it. I think it's time we talked ter Marley about this.'

Alex nodded. 'Yep.' She agreed, kissing Milly lightly on the forehead.

Gene watched as she kissed Milly's ginger hair, so lovingly, so maternally...an image flashed before his mind, of Alex with a little baby, a tiny warm baby in her arms, with blonde hair and perhaps her hazel eyes..._their_ baby. He shook the thought from his head as they walked back to the station, his hand occasionally brushing hers as they walked side by side.

* * *

**Hope you liked that, reviews please?! Tee hee, thanks for reading, love y'all. X =D**


	19. And So The Case Continues

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*Performs little victory dance* This story has beat The Blurring Lines of Time in the review records! Well, technically The Choices We Made has more reviews, but out of my Ashes stories, this one has the most! I was so thrilled to see it now has over 200 reviews; I never expected such a great response, so thank you to all of you for your lovely, supporting reviews!

**Two special mentions, first to Blond Velma again, who this story is for because of all her support and for generally being fantastic (extra cookies for you, hun) and secondly to Arria Rose, as she was the 200****th**** reviewer! Enjoy this chapter and keep those reviews coming! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes, but I'm happy to own this story!**

**Chapter 19 – And So The Case Continues**

* * *

'Right, you filthy bastard, time you answered a few questions honestly.' Gene said loudly as he pulled back a chair and sat down next to Alex.

'We find out yer importing stuff off the continent illegally, my team find out yer've imported cocaine and then Pete Crowley, one of yer workers and a suspect in our murder investigation collapses to the floor, looking like death warmed up, because of a cocaine overdose. Explain?'

Terry Marley stared at Gene madly; his eyes were wild and desperate, like he was deprived of something. Alex frowned; he'd only been here overnight, what had happened to him? Unless...of course, he imported cocaine, it would be silly to think he didn't use it. He hadn't had any since he'd come in here. He was a cocaine addict. The way his lips twitched and his anxious expression confirmed this to Alex.

'I just get the stuff and sell it, so what Crowley buys some, not my problem how he uses it.' He shrugged, leaning back and trying to compose himself, stilling his twitching lip.

'Fair dues.' Alex said, leaning forward and resting her hands on the table. 'So you're admitting to importing Class A drugs and selling them on?'

'You admitting you look thoroughly shaggable love?' He replied, licking his lips suggestively as he leant forward to her.

A low growl emitted from Gene's throat as his fists clenched and he stood up, his chair flying backwards. Alex jumped up soon after him and put a firm hand on his upper arm, tugging slightly until he followed her out of the room.

'What, Bolly?' He growled, shooting Marley a death glare through the window.

'Listen, I've had an idea.'

'What? I'm telling yer, Bolly, if it involves you going in there on yer own, no way.'

Alex sighed and shook her head. 'Gene, do you want some answers or not?'

'I want answers as much as you, Bolly. What I don't want is him staring at yer arse, or yer tits fer that matter.'

'Gene, if I go in there and turn on the charm, ask him a few casual questions, I can probably catch him off guard. I just feel he's not going to say anything when you're there, he's not scared to be knocked about, Gene, you can see that.'

Gene's face twisted, his expression morphing slowly from horror, to protectiveness, to anger and finally settling on a grimace. 'Yer not doing it, Bolly. And that's that.' He insisted firmly.

'You're not the boss of me, Gene! We could get some answers out of him this way, and you're just letting you're big ego get in the way!' She exclaimed, looking at him incredulously.

'I am not doing this because of my ego, Bolls! I am doing it ter bloody protect yer from disgusting, filthy twats like him!' Gene loudly retorted, pushing his face up close to hers. 'Don't do this, Bolly.'

'Gene, just let me try. I'll be fine.' Alex said in a low voice, looking urgently into his eyes.

'Yer won't be fine, Bolls. Yer don't know what'll be running through his mind.' His voice was pleading now, begging her not to do this.

'Gene, please...we'll just give it a try, let me go in alone and talk to him. Once I've got the answers I want, I'll come back out, I promise I'll be alright.'

After a long, awkward pause Gene finally agreed. 'Fine, but he does anything and I'm in there faster than Ray out of a Gay Club, right, sexy-kickers?'

Alex nodded. 'Thank you, Gene.' She whispered before disappearing back inside. Gene watched helplessly as she made her way over to the desk, hips swaying tantalisingly and then perching the desk, one toned leg swinging while she leant forward slightly. Gene could only imagine the glorious view she was now providing that slimy bastard with and felt a powerful surge of jealously course through him.

* * *

'Sorry about DCI Hunt.' Alex said sweetly as she set her lips into a slight pout, looking at Marley from beneath her eyelashes. She hated to do something like this, but if it meant answers, then so be it.

'S'alright, love, no worries. But you should really get a real man darling, not a bloody wanker like him.'

Alex ignored the comment and just smiled slightly at him, leaning forward further and keeping her voice reasonable low and seductive. 'Do want to play a game, Terry?' She asked, fluttering her lashes in a way she hoped was flirtatious.

She watched, inwardly disgusted, as he shifted himself and smirked at her. 'What game, love? I do all sorts.'

Alex smiled and sat back a little, deciding she'd caught him, time to reel him in. 'A word game, I'll say something and you just tell me the first thing that comes into your head, ok?'

He looked slightly disappointed, but nodded all the same. 'Alright, darling, go for it.'

Alex smiled again at the gaunt faced, dirty man and began to lay her trap.

'England?' She asked mildly.

'London.' He replied instantly, still looking at her appreciatively.

'Chips?'

'Fish.'

'Docks?' She was beginning to pull him in now, to bring him closer...

'Ships.'

'Guns?' She decided to head down the line of him murdering Samantha, if he had killed her, he would have acquired a gun, his answer would tell all.

'Bullets.'

No luck. Alex wasn't sure yet whether or not he was guilty for murder, but if she couldn't get him for that, she'd get him for the drugs, no problem.

'Cocaine?' She asked in her most apathetic voice, making sure it sounded as innocent as all the other questions.

'Crowley.' He spat in distaste, as though the name repulsed him. But then, suddenly realising what he had said, he leapt up, grabbing her arm too fast for Alex to reach. Violently, he shoved her up against the wall, his face close to hers.

'You scheming bitch!' He shouted, angry at her for his loss of control, for allowing her to let his tongue slip.

'Get off her, yer bastard!' Gene yelled even louder, striding in and pulling Marley away from her, pushing him to the ground.

The next thing Alex knew, a loud crack resounded in the air and she turned her head to see Marley lying on the hard ground, blood seeping from his smashed nose down onto the linoleum floor, making a stain she was sure no cleaner would be able to get out.

She looked up to see a wild look in Gene's eyes as he stared aggressively at Marley. 'That's what yer get fer being an arsehole, Marley.' He spat, going over and tugging on Alex's arm, pulling her from the room.

'Yer alright, Bolly?' He asked, eyes scanning over her to check he hadn't hurt her.

'I'm bloody fine, Gene! I can handle things you know, I'd just got somewhere and you have to come in and ruin his face! Honestly, Gene!' She cried as he took a step back in surprise.

'What the hell you going on about, Bolly! I was just looking out fer yer; I will not let scum like that have his way with yer!'

She gasped exasperatedly. 'Oh as if he would have done that, he only got angry and pushed me, Gene!'

'Bloody women! I'll never understand 'em!' Gene finally shouted, turning and storming off down the corridor without a second glance.

Alex stared disbelievingly after him, shaking her head before hurrying along down the corridor, calling to him. 'Gene! Don't you want to know why he got so angry?!'

Gene turned and glared at her. 'Enlighten me, Bolly-Kecks, since I don't seem to be able to do anything right by yer! Why yer even with me in the first place?!'

'Gene, don't say that.' Alex said softly, feeling as if she might cry as she walked up to him. 'I'm sorry; I know you're only trying to look out for me.' She told him, reaching up and putting both hands around his neck. 'Sorry.' She repeated, looking into his stormy sea-green eyes.

'Yer don't know how much yer scared me, Bolly. Sat in there giving him the best view in the world, then he shoves yer like that...' Alex felt him shudder beneath her arms and she nodded.

'I know, Gene. Sorry I got angry. Do you want to know what he said?' She asked, smiling at him.

'In a minute, Bolly.'

At that Gene ducked his head, pressing his lips to hers in a kiss more tender than any of the others Alex had received, their mouths moved in harmony, his tongue sliding against hers as he placed his hands lightly on her waist, pulling her closer.

'He seemed to have fallen out with Pete Crowley...' Alex whispered as Gene placed a trail of light kisses from the corner of her mouth to her ear-lobe. 'I think he might have tried to kill him with the drug overdose, Gene.'

Gene sighed and stood back. 'You think Marley tried to kill him?'

Alex nodded. 'He seemed guilty as hell, Gene. We'll have to go see Pete, obviously and then talk to Marley again, but there's more to all this than just Samantha Jones' murder, it's a complicated web of events, all intricately linked somehow...'

'You know it turns me on when yer talk about all that Psychology crap?' Gene murmured, kissing her neck just below the jaw.

A smile spread across Alex's face as her hands slid down to rest on his chest, her fingers tracing patterns through his shirt. 'No, you never told me that.' She replied, looking again into his now softer eyes.

He grunted dismissively and stood back again, his hands dropping from her waist. 'Hm, well it does. What time is it?' He asked, glancing at the watch on his wrist.

'Perfect. Lunchtime. Time to go home, me thinks.' He announced, walking into CID and barking out an order for the rest to 'get lost and go home' before picking Milly up.

'Come on, Milly, home-time.'

Milly grinned and wrapped her arms around his neck, snuggling up to his shoulder as he carried her out and gently put her into the Quattro as Alex watched, a small smile playing on her face.

'What yer thinking, Bolls?' He asked as he put the car in gear, reversing back before shooting down the road.

'Wondering when you became such a softie actually.' She commented, laughing under her breath.

He simply turned to look at her, his eyes piercing hers smoulderingly, filled with meaning as his hand subtly gestured towards her.

* * *

Alex was making her way back from the bathroom, padding barefoot over the soft carpet when she stopped, hearing soft voices coming from Milly's room.

She stopped just short of the door, listening to Gene's low murmur and Milly's inquisitive voice. The dim light from the nightlight was lightly spilling out onto the landing, decorated with Gene's shadow and now hers as she remained hidden, eavesdropping.

'Do you love Alex?'

Alex unconsciously bit her lip gently when she heard another of Milly's questions and she held her breath, waiting for his answer....

But this made her think....did she love him?

She needed him, that she knew with more certainty than anything else. Daring to imagine a life here without him, she shuddered. Oh yes, she needed him like she needed air and Milly seemed to need pink wafers. She knew she couldn't live here without him, her constant, her rock...the one who made her feel like maybe she was sane after all.

The one who made her feel more alive than she'd ever felt, even in her own time.

And in that one realisation, she knew. It didn't matter about his answer, it was already too late.

She loved him.

She loved him irrevocably, she would do anything for him, needed him, lived for him...everything about him made her sigh with contentment...

The confident way in which he walked, the ever present assured tone of his voice, the way his soft fingers felt as he caressed her, his slightly rougher lips against hers, his moans in the dead of night...his scent, the way it infiltrated her senses, whisky, cigarettes and something else she'd come to identify as simply _him_. From the outside, he looked the exact opposite of her 'type', yet in him, she had found her perfect man.

His looks were not classically handsome as Peter's had been, before the drugs. His sexiness lay in his rugged looks and the way in which he looked at her, what he _did_.

_Oh my God...I love him._

Gene looked at Milly for a while, his mind racing, looking for what to say. Did he love her? He was crazy for her, he knew that...loved everything she did, the way she walked, the way she talked, her body, her mind, the way she kissed him...her beautiful, intoxicating scent...everything that was just _Alex._

But did he love her? The problem was, he wasn't sure what love really felt like. His previous marriage had been one of pure convenience, yes, he had cared for his wife...but it was nothing like this...not even close. She drove him mad every day, being so close but yet he couldn't touch her...the way she smiled at him when she thought the others weren't looking, the way she babbled on about things he could not understand yet it seemed madly sexy coming from her mouth...

He sighed, a long, tired sigh. 'Milly...love is a very complex and complicated thing, and I don't think I'll ever understand what it is.'

Milly's little brow puckered into a frown. 'You don't love her?'

He sighed again. 'I don't know.' He admitted, not sure of his own feelings. If he was honest, he was scared; love was all but a foreign meaning to him, alien among his mind and heart, deprived of the mysterious affection for so long.

Her little frown deepened a little, her mouth pouting ever so slightly.

'But I do know one thing, Milly. I would go to the end of the earth fer Alex; I'd kill to make sure she was safe.'

He watched as her face straightened out and a small smile flickered across her face. 'Ok.'

'Now, you go to sleep, yeah?'

Milly nodded and snuggled down into the covers and Gene stood back up, frowning as he heard hurried footsteps on the landing, a shadow cross his and disappear into the bedroom.

_Oh shit...she didn't hear...did she?_

* * *

**A longer one than usual there, please give me reviews! Tee hee, X =D**

* * *


	20. Whispered Confessions

**Hi, thanks for all the great reviews so far, they're so encouraging and I can't tell you how thrilled and excited I am at how popular this story is! This chapter is a little more contained than the others, just concentrating on Gene and Alex. Hope you like it and keep those reviews coming! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes, it all belongs to the BBC. All I own is Milly and my plot. =D**

**Chapter 20 – Whispered Confessions**

* * *

The lights were off as Gene undressed and got into bed next to Alex, as she lay there deep in thought. He would probably think she was asleep, but how could she sleep? Not now his hesitant words were circulating her mind. Ghosts of her worst nightmares, the dark realisation that maybe...Gene could never return her feelings, simply because he didn't know how to. The darkness smothered her, pressing her feelings and thoughts upon her as fear built up under her skin...

'_...love is a very complex and complicated thing, and I don't think I'll ever understand what it is.'_

He didn't know what he felt...what did he feel? She had thought that he...but no, maybe he didn't feel that way, maybe she wasn't different to him, or special in his eyes. Alex had honestly thought that she was different to every other woman he had been with, that maybe she would be the one he loved and treasured above them all...but then, she had been foolish.

He was Gene Hunt, and he didn't do love...she'd known that before she had even got into this mess...but the question she was now forced to ask herself was this...

Through the tears and the pain, he had been her constant, and then her lover and she know knew she would go to the end of the earth for him, she loved him infinitely. And through all that, though there was little hope he could return that love...did she really want to let him go?

As she blinked, a tear slipped from her eye and ran down off her eyelashes, trickling down her cheek. She made no attempt to wipe it away and instead thanked the darkness so she could roll over, and allow more tears to fall and trickle slowly down her face.

She loved him more than she had loved any man...yet he could not love her in return. She knew love hurt and that sometimes it caused more pain than joy...but now she felt like a prisoner, trapped by her feelings, unable to let go.

Because she knew the answer to her question, and the answer fell in her tears, chilling her bones. She couldn't leave him...he was all she had, and though he didn't love her...she would never, ever leave him. She needed him, and she would hold on even though it hurt.

She might not be anything different, new or special to him...but he was to her and she didn't care, she was too far gone to go back now, she couldn't leave him. The idea was unbearable, unthinkable, as if doing so would kill her. She needed him and though she didn't like the idea of a woman being weak, or relying on a man to make her happy...she had become 'one of those women'. She had fallen in love.

'Alex?' He knew there was something wrong in the way she lay so still, how much had she heard?

Another tear slipped from her eyes as she rolled back over towards him, her face moving into the small chink of moonlight falling in from a gap in the curtains.

Gene stared at the glistening tears that sat on her cheek, the small droplets glimmering in the weak moonlight. She had been crying...and he realised, she had heard what he had said at first...but not about how he would go to the end of the world for her, how he would kill for her.

Wordlessly, he reached out a hand and took the tears away with one finger, moving to push her hair behind her ear. They lay in silence for a moment, both in the full knowledge that there was something wrong, a break in their relationship, a curtain falling between them and cutting them off to the icy confines of loneliness. Because he didn't know how to love her, he knew it and she knew it.

And as Gene gazed silently into her caramel eyes, wide with fear and devastation...some sort of deep running depression in their depth he knew he had hurt her. And he hated himself for it. He never wanted to hurt her, or cause her pain...never wanted her to cry.

But he also didn't want her to leave him...life without her was unthinkable, he needed her. Needed her, wanted her...had to have her near to him. Another tear fell from her eyes, dripping from an eyelash and splashing onto her cheek, his heart twisted in his chest as he watched the tear run its way down her cheek and he knew his words were what caused the tiny tear's existence.

'I'm sorry.' He whispered, taking her hand in his and intertwining their fingers.

She shook her head gently yet moved forward, burying her head in his chest as he felt tears on his bare skin, warm and salty.

'It's not your fault.' She murmured and he felt her damp lips press against the hollow of his neck, her words echoing around his mind.

He put his head down so his lips rested against her hair, his arms wrapped protectively around her, not ever want to let her go. And though they were both in pain from the other, they held onto each other. Because she loved him and at the moment, Gene didn't know how to love her...he knew he needed her, had to have her...but love? He had barely ever felt it...it had been so long, he had forgotten.

'I remember the first time...I came 'ome and he were waiting, started shouting and saying I'd stolen his money...said that I was robbin' him blind...he needed money for the fags, and the drugs...the alcohol...and he hit me round the 'ead, Alex...shoved me against the wall, my brother was out...and he didn't come back.'

Alex looked up and saw the distant ghosts in his eyes, with one blink she motioned for his to carry on while she lay there, wrapped in his strong arms.

'Then he pushed me in ter the kitchen...and that's when I saw her...my Mam, she was lying on the floor, blood pooling around her 'ead, stab wounds in her chest and head...he'd killer her, Alex.' He whispered, dread and fear flitting over his face as his hold on her increased.

And now Alex could understand why he was so protective of Milly...how he perhaps wished there had been someone there for him when his Mum had been killed by some vicious bastard. How intricately close both his and Milly's fates had been...but Milly was lucky, Gene had found her, she hadn't had to go this alone.

'How old?' She asked quietly, kissing his shoulder with her wet, salty lips and resting her cheek against his chest, damp from her tears. And she also understood why he couldn't love her...because all he had ever known of love was convenience, blood, tears and murder.

'I was ten.' He said, swallowing his disgust and pulling her ever closer, kissing the top of her head. 'I'm sorry, Alex.' He whispered, rubbing his thumb over her hip gently and pushing back the painful memories of his childhood...trying to concentrate on what he had here, now...in his arms...her sweet smell, soft skin and warm, beating heart.

He'd loved his Mum, and had lost her to a vicious, impulsive and drunken attack, performed by his own father. He'd come close to loving his wife...and she had run away from him, rubbed his face in the dirt and kicked him while he was down. Everyone he loved was poisoned, everyone he cared for snatched from him.

What would happen if he loved Alex? Gene was finding himself in one of those rare positions where he was scared, he was scared to love her, wary of falling in love with her. Because if there was one thing he knew about love, it was that it hurt when you lost it. And it hurt very much, he hadn't cared for his wife nearly as much as he cared for Alex, yet he had been close to breaking down when she left. Though he knew that was partly due to embarrassment and anger, more than heartbreak.

'It's alright...I understand. I'm here.' She whispered back, closing her eyes, her eyelashes brushing his chest.

'I love you.'

Her whispered confession was lost against his chest and she knew he hadn't heard, but still...she had _said_ it. That counted for something, right?

* * *

**I hope no-one's crying, sorry if you are – I almost was as I was writing this, but then I'm overly sensitive. I made up the bits about Gene's past because I actually haven't seen much Life on Mars, so don't really know about his childhood. Please, please leave a review and tell me how I did. **


	21. The Plot Thickens

**Hi, thanks for all the lovely reviews last chapter; I love you all so much!!! Here's the next chapter, hope it cheers you up a little from the last one! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes, just this story! *she says smugly* =D**

**Chapter 21 – The Plot Thickens**

* * *

Alex and Gene walked side by side into CID, both knowing that something had deepened in their relationship, they even seemed to look at each other even more intensely now, like the other was a lifeline. And Alex didn't care that he didn't love her, it wasn't his fault...not his fault his father had been a lying bastard, or that his wife had swanned off with another woman, all she could hope was that maybe she could get him over that...and then maybe, he might love her. But for now, the fact that he needed her, and cared for her was enough.

Milly skipped off to Shaz when they got in, as she brandished new tellytubbies magazines at the little girl, grinning like a Cheshire cat.

Alex turned to Gene, 'she's one spoilt little girl.'

Gene nodded. 'Yer don't say...so Bolly, ready to go talk ter Pete Crowley?'

'In hospital?' Alex asked, frowning slightly.

'Well that's the idea, Bolls. Why?'

Alex shrugged. 'Nothing, it's just that it's been proven that after a fit or stroke, people get nervous and confused if they get questioned too soon, I just don't want Crowley getting mixed up and telling us something that doesn't make sense.'

'Don't start all that psycho-twattery again, Bolly.' Gene ordered abruptly, his eyes dark.

'Why not?' Alex asked, offended but slightly mystified as to why his eyes had gone dark, they usually did that right before he was about to kiss her...or in the bedroom...

'I told yer, it turns me on.'

A laugh escaped her lips and she grabbed her leather jacket. 'Sorry, come on, let's go talk to Crowley, he'll probably be fine.' She said, following him out of the office.

As soon as they were out, Gene suddenly grabbed her by the waist, pushing his lips against hers in a much rougher kiss than he had ever given her. His tongue slipped into her mouth straight away while he pushed her against the wall, one hand slipping under her top and another down over her backside. Alex moaned, unable to resist as he nibbled slightly on her lower lip and she felt her insides melt. Forgetting where she was, her hands tangled in his hair as she hitched one leg up over his thigh, kissing him back eagerly, pressing her hips into his when a moan escaped from Gene's throat.

'Bloody hell, Bolly! Are you trying to kill me?!' Gene explained, pulling back from her suddenly and detaching himself.

Alex bit her lip and smoothed down her top. 'Oops. Sorry.' She said, licking her lips.

Gene groaned as he saw her tongue flick out over her lips and he grabbed her by the shoulders, holding her in front of him.

'What's wrong?' Alex asked, frowning at him while he closed his eyes and seemed to appear as though he was concentrating on something.

'Just stay there a few seconds, Bolly.' He said gruffly, holding her there.

Realisation crossed Alex's face and she giggled. 'Oh, sorry.'

He looked up, his eyes still dark. 'Right, fine. Let's go, Bolls.' He said, slipping an arm around her waist and walking out to the Quattro, even holding her door open for her, before getting in himself.

'What's happened to you?' Alex asked as he sped away towards the hospital.

Gene shrugged as he spun the wheel to the right. 'Nothing. Am I not allowed to be the gentleman once in a while?'

Alex smiled. 'Of course you are, thank you.'

'S'alright.' Gene told her as they pulled up outside the hospital, brakes squeaking and parking in a place Alex was sure wasn't legal. But she got out nonetheless and walked with Gene into the hospital, her hand resting comfortably inside his warm one the whole time.

* * *

Pete Crowley was laid in the hospital bed, his face paler and more haggard than Alex had ever seen it, his eyes containing some sort of dark, wild depth. He was craving the drug that caused him to be lying there, she knew it.

'I thought you filth would be round 'ere as soon as possible.' He said as he saw them make their way in, pulling seats up to his bedside. His voice was low and rough, as though it gave him trouble just speaking.

Alex gave him a small, sympathetic smile, ignoring his comment. 'Mr Crowley, you're in here because of a cocaine overdose, now we know you bought those drugs off your boss, Terry Marley...can you please tell me, did you mean to take an overdose?'

Pete made a face at her. 'What the hell are you on about, love? It's cocaine, it don't have an overdose, you just take what you want and it looks like I took too much, don't it?' He croaked, glancing at the drip above his head, helping him to stay alive.

Alex sighed. 'Mr Crowley, can you please tell us how much cocaine you took, please?' She inquired, keeping her voice even and polite as possible, ignoring Gene's tense body beside her and the straight set of his lips.

'Yeah, or it won't just be the bloody drugs keeping yer in hospital.' Gene added, glaring at Pete. Little did Pete know, or really Alex for that matter...that the reason Gene was staring at him with such loathing and such distaste, was that he could see in Pete Crowley exactly what he saw in his brother, who he hadn't heard of since the day his mother died, he'd just disappeared off the face of the earth.

_Good riddance. _Gene thought, remembering how he had been so scared, wanting to know where his brother was...ten years old he was, just ten...and his brother had not been bothered enough to get off the drugs to come and find him.

Alex reached out and laid a hand on his arm, motioning for him to stay quiet. 'Mr Crowley, please just tell us how much you took.'

Pete sighed and looked up at the drip again. 'I don't remember.' He told them.

'Rearrange the following words. Of load rubbish.' Gene growled, narrowing his eyes at him.

Pete looked at Alex, shaking his head. 'I'm telling the truth, it were a week ago that I had any on me, then I went out drinking with Terry...and I don't remember much else...woke up in my bed with a pounding headache, the next day, you lot came around and said he'd been taken in. That's when this happened.' He said, gesturing to the various tubes attached to him.

Alex bit her lip and glanced at Gene, he put his head on one side, silently asking her something, with a small nod of her head, she answered. They both stood up and put the chairs back.

'Ok, thank you, Mr Crowley.' Alex said, doing her jacket up. 'You've been very helpful but I must warn you, you will be arrested for possession and use of class A drugs.'

Pete nodded and croaked out a goodbye before they left.

* * *

'So he were telling the truth?' Gene checked as they got into the car.

Alex nodded. 'Definitely, not only does the story fit, but it goes with Marley's reaction in the interview room and his body language and eyes, he was telling the truth, Gene.'

'Bugger.' Gene muttered, slamming his foot onto the accelerator. 'This is getting more complicated by the minute, there's all this drugs mess going on and we haven't even got close to the actual killer yet, Bolly. It's bloody mad.'

Alex hummed in agreement. 'And so the plot thickens...' Alex murmured under her breath.

* * *

**Thanks for reading, I hope you liked it and please tell me what you thought in a review! X =D**


	22. Five Important Words

**Hi, thanks as ever for your lovely reviews. A quick thank you also to 'erinn xx' who gave me a really lovely anonymous review, thanks and of course I'm going to continue! Here's the next chapter, hope you all like it!**

**Also, a quick request. In a few weeks I'm going to start writing a Twilight/Torchwood fic, but I'm unsure of what to call it, could you please, please go vote on my profile for what to entitle it! I'd be very grateful. X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes, more's the pity.**

**Chapter 22 – Five Important Words**

* * *

'Right, everyone, listen up because Bolls here is only going to say this once!' Gene announced, striding back into CID with Alex by his side.

'Me?' Alex asked with the flicker of a frown.

Gene nodded. 'Yes, you, Bolls. Just tell 'em what's going on so we can go talk ter Marley again.'

Alex smiled at him and turned back to address the team. 'Right, so far, Terence Marley has been arrested for shipping, using and trading with Cocaine, but he's also now a suspect for the attempted murder of Peter Crowley and possibly for the murder of Samantha Jones. Chris and Ray, I want you to do some digging on Marley, please. Just get down to those docks and dig up as much information as you can for me, now get your arses down there!' She shouted, winking at Gene who looked impressed.

'Yes, Ma'am. Right away, Ma'am.' Chris and Ray muttered obediently as they rushed out of the office, pulling on their jackets as fast as possible at her instructive words.

Gene smirked and leant over to whisper in Alex's ear. 'Turns me on when yer act all instructive, d'yer mind doing that in the bedroom, Bolly?' He asked, giving her backside a discreet squeeze.

Alex smiled. 'If you're good.' She replied, biting back a laugh as a small groan emitted from the back of his throat.

At that point, Milly padded over. 'Gene, I'm really hungry, and Shaz says I shouldn't have any more pink wafers.'

Alex smiled at the little girl and crouched down to her height. 'No, you shouldn't have any more of those, sweetie.' She told her, glancing up at the clock. 'Come on, me and Gene will take you to Luigi's, yeah?' She straightened up and took Milly's hand in hers, turning to Gene.

'I thought we were going ter talk ter Marley, Bolly.' He said, that priceless pout on his lips.

Alex shrugged. 'We're senior officers, I'm sure we can get away with leaving a little early. Besides, it'll be easier to interview Marley once we've got more on him.' She replied, already making for the door, Milly's hands still in hers.

* * *

The flicker of a smile crossed Gene's face as he followed Alex and Milly out. 'Never had yer down fer breaking the rules, Bolly.'

Alex smiled. 'They're not exactly rules anyway; we're only an hour early.' She said as they entered Luigi's to be greeted by the generous Italian.

'Ah, Signor Hunt, Signorina Drake and Signorina Milly! I bring over the usual, yes?'

'Thank you, Luigi.' Alex said with a warm smile, mirroring Gene as he took a seat at the table in the corner. _Their_ table.

'So, Milly, what d'yer want?' Gene asked, his hand resting on Alex's knee under the table.

'Can I have the smiley face pizza again?' Milly replied, referring to the pizza she had been given by Luigi that fateful day when Gene had found her curled up amongst the debris of her mother's murder.

'Sure yer can.' Gene said before shouting over to Luigi. 'Can we have that house rubbish, Luigi and a smiley face pizza for Milly 'ere!'

'Yes, yes, Signor Hunt. Patience please!' Luigi called back, appearing minutes later with the wine and pizza.

'Tar, Luigi.' Gene told him as he set the food and drink down.

'No problem, Signor Hunt. I go back to my television now.'

Once Luigi had walked away, Alex leant over and helped Milly to cut her pizza up into small slices that were easier for her to pick up before picking up the glass of wine Gene had poured for her.

'Not bad.' Gene remarked, swilling the red wine around and looking at it with narrowed eyes and a set pout. 'Fer his usual rubbish.'

Alex laughed and placed her free hand over the hand that was covering her knee, making small circles over his thumb and watching in amusement as his lips tightened. Sneakily, she drifted her hand away to his knee, wandering up to his mid-thigh.

'Bolly.' Gene groaned in a low voice so Milly couldn't hear. 'Watch what yer doing.'

Alex smiled but left her hand where it was. 'I've no idea what you're talking about, Gene.' She whispered back.

'Is there something wrong?' Milly asked through a mouthful of pizza.

'Nothing's wrong, Hun.' Alex replied, smiling. 'Gene seems to be talking nonsense as ever.' As she said the words, she squeezed Gene's thigh a little, smirking as his eyes widened.

'Yeah, just me talking nonsense, Milly. And as fer you, Alex...two can play at that game.'

Milly frowned and continued eating her pizza with enthusiasm while unbeknownst to her, Gene began tracing patterns on Alex's thigh and hips under the table.

Alex tensed as his fingers ran over her leg, making the hairs on her spine stand up. All she really, really wanted to do at that moment was get him home, and quick. But she would wait, wait until Milly had finished and they'd got her tucked up in bed at home.

* * *

'She in bed?' Gene asked as Alex made her way back downstairs, she looked beautiful as ever, her curly hair hanging loose around her shoulders and shirt drifting out from the hemline of the tight jeans she wore.

Alex nodded. 'Yep, sleeping away.' She replied, making her way over to him and putting her arms around his neck, looking up into his eyes. 'What do you want to do now then?'

Gene pouted and rested his hands on her hips. 'I don't know, Bolly...tell yer what though.'

'What?'

'Yer driving me bloody mental.' He growled in her ear before pressing his lips to hers and pushing her down onto the sofa, tumbling on top of her in a smart move, his lips never moving from hers.

'Gene...' Alex moaned as his hands moved to her shirt.

'What?' He grunted as he ripped the buttons apart, staring appreciatively at the lacy bra now exposed to him.

Alex smiled. 'Nothing...just love you, that's all...' she trailed off as his lips pressed to her chest by the line of her bra, moving across as his hands reached around to undo the clasp behind her back. 'And about the knickers I'm wearing, I'm rather fond of them so please don't rip them off. You seem to like doing that.'

Gene looked up at smirked. 'I'll try not to Bolly-Knickers.' He muttered, returning his attentions to her.

* * *

'You were right.' Gene murmured as Alex lay in the crook of his arm on the sofa a while later. 'They were nice knickers.'

Alex smiled up at him, her eyes half closed. 'I thought you'd like them...now go to sleep.' She mumbled, completely closing her eyes again.

Gene nodded and rested his head on the cushion but made sure he was facing her...he most certainly would not go to sleep. Instead he just lay there, watching her sleep, the most beautiful woman he had ever met...

He watched as her bare chest raised up and down, a sleepy, sexy pout residing on her smooth lips. He smiled to himself...the most beautiful woman he'd ever met...and she was all _his._ The thought gave him some sort of overwhelming sense of satisfaction...she was all his...it sounded good. When he'd first laid eyes on her, dressed in that ridiculously short but sexy dress, the first thing he'd thought was how much did he think she charged. But then, when he found out she was his new DI he'd thought how infuriating, know-it-all and posh she was...but now?

Now, she was still infuriatingly, but not the same type of infuriating. She was infuriatingly _sexy_ – walking around the office all day in those tight jeans, her makeup perfect and looking bloody beautiful as ever...making him feel as though all he wanted to do was kiss and shag her senseless until she was struggling for breath....

He sighed, glancing at the clock. Her deep, calm breaths showed him she was deeply asleep and he leant over, whispering into her hair.

'Think I love yer, Bolls.'

Though of course, she never heard his words due to the ignorant blanket of sleep laid over her mind, leaving her alone with her dreams...all of them including him, or her lost daughter.

* * *

**Sorry, there wasn't much plot in that, but I hope the Galex made up for it! Next chapter, we should be back to a mixture, I promise! Please, please review! X =D**


	23. Shock

**Hi, massive thank you as ever for all the lovely reviews! Here's the next chapter – please keep the reviews coming! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes, never have and never will – wow, that sounds a little depressing. Hehe. =D**

**Chapter 23 – Shock**

* * *

'Guv! Come have a look at this!' Was Gene's greeting as he walked into CID, alone this morning. He missed Alex's subtle presence by his side, the way her hand would lightly brush his as they walked through the grey corridors...not to mention, he wouldn't be able to look at her arse for the whole day.

Alex had said she felt ill that morning, and Gene had to admit she looked a little peaky. So he'd given her the day off and Milly had stayed at home with her. She'd said she just felt a bit sick, that was all but still, Gene worried about her.

'What?' He grunted, crossing over to where Chris and Ray were stood, proud grins plastered across their faces.

'Here, we found this hidden away in a file in Marley's office. Certainly makes for interesting reading, Guv.'

Gene pouted and took the thin piece of paper Chris was holding out for him. He shook it slightly and looked down at the spiky writing scrawled across it.

_9__th__ September, 1981_

_Johnny,_

_Bloody Crowley's only gone and put his foot in it. His ex-bitch knows, he let it slip out while he was begging her for money, the stupid bastard. I always said we couldn't trust him, and now you see what I mean. Now, both you and I know, Johnny, that for this to run smoothly, we need that bitch to keep her mouth shut. And I've made too many mistakes to let this opportunity pass just because bloody Crowley can't keep a secret. I want her silencing._

_Permanently._

_I know I can trust you. _

_Terry._

Gene's eyes widened and he held the letter out to Shaz. 'Make sure this stays safe in the Evidence Room, don't let anyone move it. Got me?' He ordered while Shaz nodded.

'Sure, Guv.'

'So, who do you think this 'Johnny' is, Guv?' Ray asked, looking around and noticing Alex's absence. 'Not to mention, where's DI Drake?'

'Bolly's feeling a little queasy, I've given her the day off. And as fer 'Johnny', I've got no idea.'

'What about Johnny Crester, Guv?' Shaz piped up shyly, biting her lip.

Gene frowned. 'Why would Marley have got him to knock Samantha Jones off? How would they even know each other? Not ter mention, yer forgetting that Crester tipped us off about the cocaine imports.'

Shaz shrugged. 'Just a thought...maybe he felt guilty, Guv.'

Gene shook his head. 'I hardly think so, Granger. Now go get that letter in the evidence room like I bloody asked yer to, and stop giving me ridiculous theories. Yer almost as bad as Bolly.'

'Right...sorry, Guv.' She said quietly, slipping away to the Evidence Room.

'Now, I'm going in ter my office. I want you lot catching up on that paperwork for a minute.' Gene instructed, pointing to a stack of papers on Shaz's desk before striding into his office and shutting the door.

* * *

With a sigh, he sank down into his chair and picked up the phone, dialling his own number.

'Hello?' Alex's voice greeted him, but it was weird, she sounded like she'd been crying...or, maybe it was just him.

'Hi, Bolly. How yer doing?'

'Er...yeah, fine...what's up?' She asked.

'Chris and Ray found a letter in Terry Marley's office. It's a note asking some 'Johnny' person ter kill Samantha Jones. What do yer think?' Gene replied, toying with a dart in his right hand.

There was silence for a while before Alex spoke. 'Johnny?'

'Yeah, just says Johnny.'

'It could be Johnny Crester.' Alex suggested. 'I know that sounds mad but maybe he felt guilty and that's why he helped us, or he could have been pressurised into killing her. These things are nearly always complicated.'

Gene pouted a little. 'Funny, that's what Shaz said.'

'Really?' Alex asked. Not completely surprised, Shaz was a clever girl.

'Yeah, even said about the guilt thing. Maybe I should give her more credit than I do.'

'Yeah.' Alex said, sounding a little subdued.

Gene frowned, wondering why her voice seemed so dejected. 'Bolly, what's wrong?'

'Nothing, I'm fine.' Alex told him, though not very convincingly.

'Bolly, just tell me what's wrong.'

There was more silence for a while before Alex's small voice came through. 'Um...could you possible come home for a bit? I need to talk to you. If you can't...it's ok.'

Gene's frown deepened further, what on earth could Alex want to talk to him about? She didn't want to move out, did she? Maybe she'd changed her mind about him...or maybe she was planning on going home now and leaving him...

Gene's heart sank. Not now...she couldn't leave him now, he was only just beginning to accept that maybe he...maybe he...he loved her.

'Yeah sure, Bolls. I'll be right there.' He told her, trying to keep the panic out of his voice as he quickly put the phone down and rushed out of his office.

'Right you lot, I'm going home quickly. I want you lot trying ter find out who this Johnny is, look to see if Marley had anyone working fer him called Johnny.'

And in one second he was gone, almost running out of the station and jumping into the Quattro, pulling it away at top speed, the tyres screeching and seatbelts flapping. All he could think while he was driving madly and throwing his car around the bends was 'not now, not yet.' He couldn't live without her...if she chose to leave; he had no idea what he would do. Go back to the drink, he supposed. Drown out his sorrows with endless amounts of alcohol.

* * *

'God, Alex! What's wrong?' Gene gasped as Alex answered the door, her face pale, eyes wide and tear tracks stuck on her white cheeks. He rushed forward, shutting the door behind him and putting his hands on her delicate shoulders, looking into her tearful eyes.

'I...I don't know...' She whimpered, looking down almost as if she was avoiding his gaze.

Gene sighed, leaving his hands on her shoulders. 'Alex, just tell me. What's wrong?' His voice was pleading, begging her not to leave him, as he so strongly thought she would. 'Are yer leaving me?' He asked in barely more than a whisper.

Alex looked up at him, shock clearly displayed in her moist eyes. 'What?'

Gene took a surprised step back, his hands dropping down to his sides. 'Well...yer all upset and not talking and...I'm hardly in my prime, Alex...I knew it was only a matter of time before yer found someone else...someone younger and better looking.' He admitted quietly, his eyes hard.

Alex lifted a shaking hand to cover her mouth in pure shock. 'No.' She whispered, stepping towards him and placing her quaking hand on the side of his face, running her thumb along his cheek. 'I wouldn't...I'd never leave you, Gene. Of course I'm not leaving you, I love you. I love you so much, but I'm just scared Gene.'

Gene lifted his hand to cover hers, taking it down and dropping it, putting his own hand on her upper arm. 'Alex, is that what's wrong? Yer scared? Of what?' He questioned, getting more confused by the minute and trying to suppress the feeling of relief at her tender words.

A small tear slipped from her eyes and rolled down her cheek in what seemed to Gene an incredibly teary manner. 'I'm scared you'll leave _me_. Because...'

'Leave you?!' Gene exclaimed, his turn to be shocked now. 'Alex, I...I...' But for the first time in his life, the Gene Genie was speechless, just stopping himself. Was he really ready to say it yet? To tell her?

'Yer the most important thing in my life, Bolly. Yer know that.' He said simply, inwardly cursing himself for being the coward he was.

But he now noticed that not just her hand was trembling, her whole body was. She'd begun shaking, more tears jerking from her eyes as her lip trembled and fear emanated from her eyes. She lifted two quaking hands up to cover her teary face as sobs began to rack her body like hiccups, never seeming as if they would cease.

Gene just stared, at a total loss of what to do, why was she so upset? What had he said? All he'd said was what she meant to him? What was so upsetting about that...?

He frowned and reached up his hand to gently prise hers from her face. She looked at him, her wide fearful eyes a sharp contrast against her reddened face.

'Alex, tell me what's wrong. Why do you think I'll leave yer?' He told her gently, still holding her hands.

'Because I'm....I...I'm...' She stuttered, tears still spilling from her eyes. She took a deep breath, preparing herself to construct some sort of sentence.

And very simply she said the words. Her voice was barely a whisper as she uttered them, flinching almost as if she expected to be hit.

'I think you'll leave me...because I'm...I'm pregnant.'

* * *

**Ah...I've suddenly turned extremely evil, because that's evil – isn't it? Ah well, review anyway! Please? X =D**


	24. Revelations

****

Hey, thanks for all your brilliant reviews, they're all so helpful and encouraging and I thought I'd better update soon considering the cliff-hanger I left this on. This chapter is only going to focus on Gene and Alex with no plot, but I promise the next chapter will have quite big plot developments. Enjoy the chapter!

**Disclaimer – I don't own anything you recognise. **

**Chapter 24 – Revelations**

* * *

Gene stood there for a full minute just staring at her, her hands still held by his in front of his chest. He dropped them and took a small step back from her, running a hand through his hair.

'Oh.' He simply said, looking expectantly at her, waiting for her to say something. But more tears just slipped from her eyes as she sank back onto the bottom step, burying her face in her hands again.

'I'm sorry.' She murmured, moving her hands eventually and looking at him with some sort of fear in her eyes. Gene just couldn't work it out, why was she looking at him as though she expected him to shout at her, or hit her? She knew he'd never to that to her...right?

He sighed and went to sit next to her on the stairs, taking the hands away from her face again and holding them on her knees. 'Bolls, yer don't need to be sorry. Why are yer sorry?' He asked softly, his puzzlement showing through his voice. He just wanted to know what was running through her mind.

Alex turned her head on one side slightly to face him, but her eyes remained downcast. 'B...because I...I know you won't...wa...want it.' She stuttered, turning her head away again as another tear wound down her face.

Gene's eyes widened. 'Won't want it? Alex, why do yer think I wouldn't want a child with you?'

She kept her gaze fixed on their entwined hands resting on her knees, refusing to look at him in fear she'd break down. 'Because...I don't know, because...you don't want an annoying little kid getting in the way of us and...And you'll get angry and won't want it and then you won't want me anymore and, and...' She began hiccupping and broke off in sobs, leaning her head against the banister.

Gene looked at her incredulously and was at a total loss of what to say, or what to do. 'Alex...' He began softly, taking one of his hands away from hers to cup her face and turn it around to face him. 'I wouldn't think that at all, a child wouldn't get in the way of us, nor would it stop me wanting yer. I don't think anything could stop me wanting yer.' He told her sincerely, smiling slightly in the hope she'd smile too. 'We've got Milly upstairs, and she hasn't got in the way, has she?'

* * *

'You...you don't mind that I'm pregnant?' Alex asked cautiously, not quite believing him. She just didn't want to get hurt....not again.

Gene shook his head and traced his thumb over her bottom lip gently. 'Alex, do yer want ter know what I think?'

Alex blinked and nodded slightly in reply, her eyes still glazed over from the tears.

'I think...' He paused, brushing his lips against her throat before whispering in her ear. 'I think it's _brilliant_.'

Alex jumped back in shock, looking at him with wide eyes. 'You..._want_ a child...With..._me_?'

Gene nodded. 'Yes, and of course with you, yer daft tart. Who else?' He replied, squeezing her hand.

Alex stood up and wiped her tears away, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. 'No...you'll say that now, and then when it's born and I have to look after it and spend less time with you, you'll get jealous and you'll...you'll either stay but just...not be here...or you'll leave.' She told him, the words tumbling out of her mouth all of a rush as more tears fell from her eyes.

Gene stood up and took her by the shoulders, pulling her close to him and wrapping his arms around her waist. 'Shh...Alex, that's not going ter happen. Why d'yer think I'm going ter do that? I mean what I say, Alex, I think it's brilliant. I would love to have a child with yer.'

She shook her head, pulling back with that same fear in her eyes again, and then...something clicked for Gene.

He took a step back, but took her hand firmly. 'Oh, I get what's going on.'

She looked up at him. 'What do you mean?'

'Yer ex-husband. That's what he did, wasn't it? Told yer he thought it was great, then when Molly was born, he left yer.' Gene said, sliding his hand up her arm to her shoulder. 'I'm sorry.'

Alex nodded and began sobbing again, more tears falling. Gene was surprised she wasn't all cried out. He took her hand and dragged her to the sofa, sitting down and pulling her to him, just letting her cry. Ten minutes later, after the front of his shirt was considerably wetter and all her tears had run dry.

* * *

'He lied to me.' She murmured into his chest. 'He said it was great and that I should keep it, but all through the pregnancy, he never once went to a scan with me, or helped me buy stuff.'

Gene nodded, kissing her hair. 'It's alright, Bolls.'

'And then...when Molls was born, he just showed no interest at all and then because I was feeding her and looking after her most of the time, he got angry and...' Gene heard her take a deep ragged breath before continuing.

'We had quite a few fights, he was jealous that I wasn't paying him much attention. But the truth was that if he helped out with Molly a little more then maybe things would have been different and then...'

'What, Bolly?' Gene asked, holding her tighter.

'One night it was particularly bad, he got really angry, saying we hadn't had sex in weeks and then...he...he...' She broke off again, a few small, dry sobs emitting from the back of her throat.

'What happened, Alex?' But Gene was already sure he knew what happened.

'He...raped me.' She whispered her breath staggering as she pressed herself closer to him and wrapping an arm around his torso.

'Oh, Alex.' Gene breathed against her hair, moving back to look into her wide eyes. He brought a finger up and traced it over her lips gently. 'I would _never_ lie to yer, and I would never do _that_. This child,' he moved his other hand down to cover her lower stomach, 'I want it.' He told her softly. 'Yer have to believe me, Alex. I think it's brilliant and I'm never, ever going ter leave yer.'

But Alex was still silent, just staring blankly at his chest.

Gene moved the hand that was tracing her lips to tilt her head up so she would look at him. 'Alex, look at me. Does it look like I'm lying? I would never leave yer, why would I? Yer gorgeous and sexy and clever and funny and...I'd love ter have kids with you.'

Alex's lip began trembling again. 'I want to believe you, trust me, I do.' She said quietly, taking hold of his hand. 'But...and I know this isn't your fault but you don't love me, Gene...so how can you know that you won't want to leave me in a few months time?'

Gene sighed and looked down, inwardly cursing himself for not being brave and telling her earlier. Taking a deep breath, he looked up and captured her eyes with his.

'That's the thing though, Alex. I _do_ love you.' He told her softly. 'I should have told yer the moment I realised, but what can I say – the Manc Lion can be a coward sometimes.'

Alex's eyes widened and her lips parted slightly. 'You...you love me?' She asked, her voice barely a whisper.

Gene nodded and leaned forward, brushing his lips against her throat, her jaw, her cheek, her neck... 'I love you.' I told her each time, repeating it over and over again until he eventually pressed his lips to hers.

He felt her respond beneath his mouth and he pushed her back so he was laid on top of her. She felt him trace her bottom lip with his tongue before she opened it with a small moan, allowing him entry.

'I love you, Alex.' He whispered a minute later before once again capturing her lips with his own.

* * *

**Thanks for reading and I hope you're all pretty happy with that, tee hee. Please review! X =D**


	25. Theories

**I'm sorry this has taken longer than usual to update, but as you all know, life on the run up to Christmas is pretty hectic and it's the same for me. If it isn't revising for end of term assessments, it's rehearsing for the Christmas concert. But hope this chapter makes up for it and thanks as always for your reviews and seemingly unlimited patience! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own anything you recognise.**

**Chapter 15 – Theories**

* * *

Gene walked into CID with a rare smile on his face that was beginning to scare Alex ever so slightly, she'd never seen him smile so much. But the truth was, ever since last night he just hadn't been able to stop. His arm was wrapped firmly around her waist, keeping her as close to him as possible while they entered through the swinging double doors.

'Morning, team.' Gene greeted, reluctantly pulling his arm back but still keeping it teasingly close to her side.

'Morning, Guv.' The team chorused, exchanging confused glances. They were in the middle of a tricky murder case, he hadn't been able to properly beat up Terry Marley yet and the last time they'd seen him he'd looked as worried as a hedgehog about to cross the road. So what on earth had made the Manc Lion so cheerful?

'Right, have any of you lot got any information on this Johnny character, or are yer all as useless as yer look?' He demanded, watching as the team seemed relieved that the fierce lion of Fenchurch east was still there under the wide smile.

Ray rolled his smouldering cigarette once in his fingers before grimacing and stubbing it out, not sparing a glance for the cinders in the glass ashtray. He looked up at Gene, trying to push back some comment about his holding onto Alex so tightly a minute ago. 'Yeah, Guv. Seems Shaz might not have been wrong after all.'

'How do you mean?' Alex cut in, leaning back against her own desk and looking at Ray with interest. Shaz wasn't in that day, it was her day off and she'd offered to take Milly for a while, saying she'd take her to the park or cinema.

'Well, Crester did work for Marley, but apparently he quit a little while back.'

'When?' Gene questioned, frowning slightly.

Ray grimaced a little. 'That's the suspicious thing, Guv, he quit the same day as Samantha Jones was murdered.' He informed them smartly with a twitch of a smug smile.

'The same day?' Alex checked, reaching behind her and picking up a small notepad and a pen. Gene inwardly groaned as she slipped the end of the pen in between her lips, a thoughtful look on her face. Did she even realise how bloody sexy she looked?

'What yer thinking, Bolly?' Gene asked, knowing that look all too well.

'Well, I'm starting to think that it is Johnny Crester, because-' Alex started, leaning forward and going into 'explanation' mode.

Gene quickly held a hand up, stopping her words in their tracks. 'Hold on, Bolls. Yer not going to give us a long, fancy explanation where the only words we'll have a chance in hell of understanding are the 'and's and the 'but's, are yer?'

Alex pretended to throw him an annoyed look before ignoring the jibe and carrying on, being careful to 'talk English', as Gene so tactfully put it. She leant forward again and removed the pen from in between her pouted lips.

* * *

'Right, this is all sounding like repenting guilt to me.'

'Eh?' Gene said, his signature pout settling into position.

Alex rolled her eyes and continued, smiling slightly. 'Repenting guilt is basically when someone does something wrong and immediately feels bad about it, wanting to turn themselves in. Say for example, if a little girl in primary school breaks a pencil then feels guilty and owns up to a teacher straight away?'

Gene frowned but nodded slowly along with the others. 'Yeah, go on.'

'Well, that's repenting guilt in its most basic form, they feel guilty, and then want to repent. But it can be a lot more complicated than that...I guess I shouldn't really go into it.'

Gene smiled and nodded again. 'Got it in one, Bolly-Knickers.' He quipped, putting his hands in his pocket. 'Now, how does this all apply to Crester?'

Alex smiled wryly and turned back to face everyone. 'From what it looks like, Johnny Crester was working for Marley, he could have possibly been mixed up with the drugs thing and he was obviously someone Marley felt he could trust. So, Marley finds out that Pete Crowley let it slip to Samantha about the drugs, Marley feels threatened over it and threatens Crester into murdering Samantha. Got me so far?' She explained, taking care to speak slowly.

The others murmured and nodded in mild agreement, Ray lighting up another cigarette and taking a long drag.

'Ok, so Johnny goes and does the deed and feels guilty straight away. Gene, did you say the tip-off came in the form of a note written on a typewriter, yes?'

Gene nodded. 'Yeah, just said the flat number and that someone had been killed.'

'Well, he got repenting guilt and sent us the tip-off before quitting his job and trying as hard as possible to detach himself from Terry Marley. Then he eventually decides to tell us about the drugs and disappears off the face of the earth again. He's got repenting guilt, but he's also too scared to completely turn himself in.'

'So it was Johnny Crester?' Ray asked, leaning towards the desk and stubbing out the cigarette.

Alex shrugged. 'I'm just saying that it's a possibility, we'd have to pull Johnny in and question him. But in the mean time, I think we should talk to Marley like we said, ask him about the note and Johnny.'

'Good idea, Bolls.' Gene agreed, taking his hands out his pockets. 'See what we can beat out of him.'

Alex stood up straight and nodded. 'Yeah, well...not exactly beat it out of him, but same principle.'

'Oh, shut it, Bolls.' Gene replied, wrapping his arm around her waist again and leading her out.

* * *

**About the repenting guilt thing – I completely made it up, I'm not old enough to study psychology or anything like that, I just made it up and I hope it sounds plausible, tell me if it doesn't. Thanks for reading and please review, X =D**


	26. The Clock is Ticking

**Hi, thanks as ever for all your reviews, here's the next chapter, hope you like it and please review! Happy Christmas! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes, nor the BBC – which would be a nice Christmas present, would anyone like to give me it????**

**Chapter 26 – The Clock is Ticking**

* * *

Alex peered through the window at where Marley was sat behind the desk on the edge of his seat; looking worse that she had ever seen him. Gene had gone to ring Shaz, telling her he was sorry but she needed to come in – the team needed her help on tracking down Johnny Crester.

The window was smeared with a year's worth of grime and fingerprints as Alex took care not to lean too close. Partly because she didn't want Marley to notice her but mostly due to the dirt covering the glass pane. She sighed, police stations were a lot cleaner in 2008 and the cleaners employed were quick and efficient. But then, police stations in 2008 were lacking one vital thing as far as Alex was concerned....The lion of Fenchurch East – Gene Hunt.

At that moment, the man himself came up behind her, placing both hands on her waist and pulling her away from the murky window. 'What yer looking at, Bolly?' He asked, still standing behind her and brushing his lips against her neck.

Alex took a deep breath in, the hairs on the back of her neck standing up. 'Just looking and waiting for you.' She replied in an unintentionally breathy voice, twisting around and sliding her arms up so her hands were clasped loosely around his neck.

Gene smiled and leant forward, pressing his lips to hers and kissing her gently for a few seconds before pulling back. 'Ready?'

Alex nodded and smiled in reply, reaching up to kiss his lips quickly. 'Ready.'

Gene turned away and sighed, taking a deep, reassuring breath before opening the door and holding it open for Alex to walk through. He shut it with a loud bang and took one large step over to the chair beside Alex and pulled it back with an ear-splitting screech.

'You've got a lot of questions to answer for, Marley. So I think yer better stop sulking and start talking.'

Marley looked up at Gene and Alex with wild, crazed eyes. Addiction hid behind the small, hard pupils, his craving for the drug he had illegally traded in hanging like a dark ghost and spreading across his gaunt, drawn face. 'What? No clever tricks this time sweetheart?' He snarled, addressing only Alex.

Alex narrowed her eyes at him, feeling Gene tense at her side. She threw a quick, calming glance at him before returning her gaze to Terry. 'They're not tricks, just techniques in order to release the truth, or at least snippets of it from your unconscious mind.' She explained evenly, her mouth forming into a tight line.

'Psychiatry.' Gene added, giving Alex a self-satisfied smile.

Alex bit her lip and leant over to him. 'It's psychology, Gene.' She whispered.

Gene's smile fell. 'Oh.' He looked up at Terry. 'Psychology. It's psychology.' He corrected, annoyed at himself for getting something wrong in front of a prime suspect.

'Anyway, Mr Marley, it's not important what it is. What's important is where your response lead our inquiry and it lead us to this...' Alex now placed the letter from the evidence room in front of Terry, pushing it towards him and leaning back, watching his reactions carefully.

He scanned the incriminating letter quickly, which Alex took as a sure sign that he recognized it. Though it would be foolish of him to deny it, since it was in his handwriting and the name at the bottom was his own.

After only thirty seconds, Marley looked up again, his drug deprived eyes fixing only on Alex. 'You bitch.' He said simply, his face almost pulsing with raging malice.

'Bastard!' Gene spat violently, standing up abruptly and knocking back his chair, not caring as it fell with an almighty crash to the floor.

Marley slowly turned his fire filled eyes up towards Gene, his expression changing to be a taunting sneer. 'What's wrong...?' He asked, his voice thick and vile. 'Don't like your little bitch being named for what she is? Because that's what she is, a _bitch.' _He sneered, while Alex's face grew harder and she found it more and more difficult to stop herself from slapping him.

'Why did yer get someone ter kill Samantha Jones?' Gene growled, ignoring his malicious taunts.

* * *

Pure, ice cold silence followed Gene's question, Marley just stared into space, his eyes wide and mad as a crazed dog, or perhaps a rat would be a more accurate description, what with the sunken face and hard set of his thin, torn lips. He just completely zoned out, acting as though he had never heard Gene's inquiry, acting as if there wasn't even anybody there at all. All that could be heard in the dusty, grey interrogation room was Alex's steady breathing, Gene slightly heavier, angry breaths as the air escaped in bursts from between gritted teeth and the slow _tick, tick, tick, tick_ of the clock on the wall.

A full five minutes later, Gene's now gruff voice broke through the silence, yet still Marley remained unresponsive. 'If yer not going to give us any answers, then we'll leave yer in 'ere until yer bloody do! And if you don't open that slimy mouth of yours and give us some answers, I _will _run yer through the bloody paper shredder!' He threatened, grabbing the door handle and almost breaking it off as he wrenched open the door and swept out, Alex quickly following behind and shutting the door behind her.

'Gene, what are you doing?' She asked in a hushed voice as he leant back against the opposite wall, quite obviously fuming.

'Japanese torture method.' He muttered, staring at the blue and grey checked linoleum on the corridor floor.

'What?'

Gene looked up at her, pouting. 'Japanese torture method.' He repeated, standing up and shoving his hands into his pockets with a disgruntled look on his rugged face. 'Leave 'em in a room with nothing but a ticking clock and it'll eventually unnerve him so much, he'll spill.'

Alex frowned, but then the frown gradually straightened out and she nodded. 'I can see how that makes sense.' She agreed slowly, moving to stand in front of him.

'I sounded clever for a minute there, Bolls.'

Alex smiled and reached up to fiddle with his tie. 'You sounded incredibly intelligent, Gene. Now we've done boosting your already massive ego, shall we go see if the others have tracked down Johnny Crester?'

Gene gave her a half smile and nodded, wrapping an arm securely around her waist again as they headed off down the corridor to where the team were busily trying to track down the man who had tipped them off

* * *

Meanwhile, Terence Marley sat all alone in that empty and grim musty room...with nothing but the ticking clock as dreary company...and he slowly, very slowly began to be driven mad by its steady _tick...tick...tick...tick...tick......Pete....Samantha....Pete...Samantha...Pete...tick...tick...tick..._

* * *

**Short again I know, sorry and I promise the next one will be longer, but this is a good place to break off. Thanks for reading, happy Christmas and please review! X =D**


	27. Insanity

**Hi, sorry for the delay, I went away for Christmas Day and a few days after that, nothing special, just up to my Grandma's – had fun though, spent most of my time on the Mario Kart, it's awesome! Here's your next chapter, hope you like it and please give me a review at the end! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes, and neither do you! Tee hee, =D**

**Chapter 27 – Insanity**

* * *

'Gene!' Was the first thing Gene and Alex heard as they entered CID. The next thing they knew and Milly had launched herself at Gene, wrapping her short legs around his waist and clinging to his neck. 'Hey.' She said, smiling up at him.

Gene, who'd managed to wrap his arms around the little girl just in time, gave her a half-smile. 'I'm no young man, yer know Milly, don't just launch yerself at me like tha'.' He told her, but even as he said it, he gave her a little squeeze and Alex could have sworn she saw him drop a kiss onto her carrot coloured hair before he lowered her down to the floor.

'Sorry, Gene.' Milly said, still smiling as she glanced at Alex. 'Hi, Alex.'

'Hi, Milly, what have you done this morning then?' Alex asked, bending down to push one of Milly's stray hairs behind her ear affectionately.

'Shaz took me to the park again, and she pushed me on the swing and then I went down the slide ten times and then we went on the roundabout and Shaz got really, really dizzy!' She exclaimed, looking over at Shaz who was quickly downing a glass of water. Alex had to admit, she did look ever so slightly green.

'So, you had fun then?' Gene said, sighing and looking around the office where he had to give it to them – the boys were working. They seemed to be ringing anyone and everyone, asking after Johnny Crester.

Milly nodded enthusiastically. 'Yeah! Except....' She paused and looked up warily at Alex and Gene.

'Except for what?' Gene asked hurriedly while Alex inwardly smiled at his sudden concern.

Milly looked down at the floor, taking an unexplained interest in her feet. 'Except for...the...the man. The weird man.'

'What weird man?' Gene's voice was insistent, almost ordering her to answer. He crouched down so she was at eye-level. 'What weird man, Milly?'

Milly met his gaze and two small teeth bit into her lip. 'Shaz didn't see him...but he was stood in the corner of the park, near the very tall trees and the bushes...and every time I looked he was looking at me, like he was watching me and he was really weird and I couldn't work out why he was looking at me and he looked kind of sad....like he was scared or something...I felt sorry for him but he kept staring at me and Mummy taught me it was rude to stare, I don't think his Mummy taught him it was rude to stare...You should tell him that's it's rude to stare.' She told Gene, Alex's heart twisting at the innocence and childish cluelessness of what she was saying. It reminded her so much of the daughter she would never again see – of Molly. Molly used to comment in that typical childlike way of speaking and say things that seemed important to her but to adults was just sweet.

Gene, who didn't have a daughter and had never known Molly, was simply worried and suspicious at the same time. 'What did he look like, Milly? Tell me.' He said softly, though there was urgency behind his gentle request.

Milly frowned slightly, her brow furrowing as her lips formed an oh-so Gene-like pout. 'He had kind of dark hair...but it was sort of long and not like a boy's hair and it was thin and looked damp.'

Both Gene and Alex's eyes widened, a slightly shocked breath escaping from between Alex's teeth. Because she knew what Milly meant. A six year old doesn't have words like 'greasy' and 'lanky' in their vocabulary, certainly not to describe hair anyway – but by long, damp and thin, they knew what she meant.

'Johnny Crester.' Alex breathed, running a hand through her hair.

Gene looked up at her and nodded, turning back to Milly. He reached out a hand and placed it on her shoulder. 'Ok, Milly. Thank you, it turns out he's someone we want ter talk to.'

* * *

Milly nodded, confusion in her eyes. 'Ok...do you know why he looked sad and a bit frightened?'

Gene sighed, wondering how best to put it to a six year old. 'Um...have yer ever done something wrong at school or at home, Milly?'

Milly thought for a moment, before giving him a small nod. 'I knocked over a vase that Mummy liked once and didn't tell her, she was angry when she found out...but it was ok in the end, she bought another one.'

'Ok...Milly, think before yer Mum found out, 'ow did yer feel?'

Alex was still stood behind Gene and Milly, tears beginning to well in her eyes. He was being so....good with her. He was explaining it all perfectly and he was – without meaning to – using Psychology. She smiled slightly – this was the Gene Hunt she knew, the Gene Hunt she was in love with. The man whose baby she was carrying. And seeing him like this with Milly only confirmed her thoughts further of just how fantastic a father Gene would make.

'I felt bad that I'd broken it...and I felt scared though that Mummy would find out. I kind of wanted to tell her to get it over with because it was making me sad.' Milly said quietly.

'Another example of repenting guilt.' Alex murmured so only Gene could hear.

'Is that what it's like for him, Gene? Has he done something bad that's making him looked upset? Did he break something that belonged to his Mummy?'

Gene smiled slightly. 'No...He didn't break something exactly, we think he's done something a lot worse than that but don't yer worry abou' it. The Gene Genie'll get it sorted, ok?'

Milly nodded. 'Ok, can I go read my new Teletubbies magazine that Shaz got me?'

Gene stood up, rubbing his lower back where it had begin to ache from being crouched down for so long. 'Yeah, sure. You go do that, Milly. See yer later.'

He watched as Milly grabbed the magazine and went to sit at the back of the room on a bean-bag Alex had thoughtfully brought in for her a few days ago before he turned to Alex. 'Looks like we should probably go down ter the park, see what we can find there. There's CCTV at the kiosk, isn't there?'

Alex nodded and pushed her hands into her pockets. 'Yeah, ok. We'll go do that, then see about Marley. We locked him in there, right?'

Gene confirmed her statement with a nod. 'Yep, always careful me.' He told her.

Alex smiled. 'Except with contraception, obviously.' She reminded him, placing a hand over her still flat stomach.

'Shh.' Gene hushed, looking around to check no-one had heard her. 'We're not telling anyone that yet.'

'I know, sorry.' Alex replied, kissing him quickly on the lips and pulling back before anyone (Ray mostly) could start complaining.

'What d'yer stop fer?' Gene asked indignantly.

'We're in the middle of the office, Gene.'

Gene shrugged. 'Bolly, Chris and Shaz practically eat each other's faces all the time. I'm the Guv, I think I'm allowed ter kiss yer if I want ter.' He replied before assuredly placing both hands on her waist and pressing his lips against hers.

Alex wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her body right against his while allowing his tongue to slip inside her mouth, caressing her lower lip while one hand strayed down over her backside, uncaring as to the three pairs of shocked eyes now staring at them.

Shaz, Chris and Ray gawped, their eyes almost dropping out of their sockets as they watched their two senior officers make-out in the middle of CID, in full view of everyone. Ray gasped in shock as Gene slipped a hand down over Alex's arse and clutched it firmly while Chris tried to work out where DI Drake's face stopped and the Guv's started. Shaz meanwhile just looked on, a full grin on her face as she giggled at the guy's reactions. Of course they knew about Gene and Alex, they were the ones who had found them in the corridor...they were obviously just not anticipating _this_.

* * *

While Alex and Gene kissed, the rest of CID gawped and Milly read her magazine...Terry Marley was slowly turning mad.

The steady, demanding and impatient tick of the clock seemed to be picking at his mind and filling him with piercing guilt in much the same way as a dripping tap gradually fills a sink. It echoed around his brain until he began to wonder if the clock was actually still ticking, or whether it was just the persistent sound engrained in his memory and torturing him.

Every tick seemed to be saying something different to him...all he wanted to do was get out of that room, to run and run and run until he would never have to hear that annoying, omnipresent, mind consuming sound ever again. With each tick, the walls seemed to grow that little bit closer, looming towards him threateningly, daring to swallow him up. He knew how to get out, he knew the path that would help him to stop hearing it...but he couldn't do it. He couldn't admit that. That would mean years in prison, a life of solitude and guilt...he had enough guilt sat here with that damn, ever ticking clock.

It wasn't long before the painful ticking ceased to sound like mere ticks anymore. They started to form words in his head that stabbed away at his conscience, picking and pulling and tearing until he was driven to the sharp brink of confession by the _tick, tick, tick..._ of the grey clock on the wall.

The ticks formed names and places, nouns and verbs...it made him crave the drug...

_Tick...Samantha Jones...Tick...Pete Crowley...Tick...The Docks...Tick...The Blacksmith...Tick...that letter...Tick, tick...gun....Tick...trigger....Tick...shoot....Tick...dead....dead...Tick...his fault....Tick...Cocaine....Cocaine....want Cocaine....need Cocaine...Tick, tick, tick...._

_Tick........confess....._

* * *

**Hope the writing was alright, enjoy your hols and please give me a review! X =D**


	28. Another Death

**Hi, thank you so much for all you great reviews, here's the next chapter. Hope you enjoy it! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes unfortunately, but I do own the characters I made up! Yay!**

**Chapter 28 – Another Death**

* * *

Just before Alex and Gene left the office in search of Johnny Crester, the phone rang on Alex's desk, the shrill sound demanding for it to be picked up. Gene sighed and leant around Alex, one arm snaked around her waist and the other reaching for the phone. He stood back and winked suggestively at her before raising the receiver to his ear.

'DCI Gene Hunt, who's speakin'?' He asked, tapping his fingers impatiently on the desk and absentmindedly tracing small circles on Alex's waist with his other hand.

Alex watched as Gene nodded, then frowned. 'He's what?!' He exclaimed, his free arm loosening around Alex's waist in surprise. 'Yer havin' a joke.'

'What's going on?' Alex whispered, frowning at Gene's agape mouth and wide eyes but he just held up a hand to silence her.

'Righ'...we'll be right there. Bye.' And with that, he put the phone down again.

'It's Pete Crowley; he's only going and bloody dying on us.' He told her, annoyed.

'He's dying?' Alex asked, her face becoming one of surprise. She knew he'd been in a bad way, but dying? That would mean one thing...Terry Marley could possibly be up for not just ordering the death of Samantha Jones, importing, possessing and using drugs but also the direct murder of Pete Crowley, rather than just attempted murder.

Gene nodded and shoved his hands in his pockets in a disgruntled fashion. 'Yep. And apparently he wants to talk ter us before he goes, what the useless bastard wants to tell us is beyond me, but there yer go. And yer know what this means, Bolly.'

'What?'

Gene sighed. 'We're gonna have ter send Tweedle-dum and Tweedle-dummer to look fer Johnny Crester at the park while we go and watch some useless prat die on us.' He told her, jabbing a thumb to Ray and Chris in turn.

Alex frowned at him. 'Ray and Chris are perfectly capable of looking for Johnny Crester and this is a man's death you're talking about, at least pay some respect.'

Gene inwardly rolled his eyes and grabbed his coat, shouting out orders to Ray and Chris before turning back to Alex. 'Right, sexy-knickers, get your gorgeous arse in gear and let's go.'

Alex sighed and shook her head, picking up her jacket and pulling it on. 'Just try and be polite, yeah?'

Gene shrugged silently in reply and wrapped an arm around her waist again, leading her out to the Quattro and holding open the door for her the way he had for the last few days. It seemed the Gene Genie was falling into some kind of chivalrous habit. 'That polite enough, Bolly?' He asked as he got in the driver's seat and stamped on the accelerator.

'I mean to Crowley, Gene, not me.' She replied, unable to keep the hint of a laugh out of her tone.

Gene smiled to himself and threw the Quattro around yet another corner before they finally screeched up outside the hospital.

'Gene, this is a parking space reserved for the frail and elderly.' Alex reprimanded when he parked up.

'Well if they're frail and elderly, maybe they should be inside the bloody hospital instead of parked outside it, Bolly!' Gene retorted, getting out and slamming the door in a way that could only be described as Manc Lion fashion.

Alex rolled her eyes and got out, following Gene into the hospital and stopping when he turned around to face her. 'Or perhaps you could be frail and I'll be elderly, 'ow about that, Bolls?' He asked, grinning smartly.

'You're impossible.' She huffed, though the kiss she quickly planted on his lips went against her statement.

* * *

Gene stepped reluctantly into the pristine hospital room after Alex, the smell of disinfectant creeping up his nose and making him feel slightly sick. The truth was he'd never been too good with hospitals ever since he'd had to sit and watch his unconscious mother slip away as a result of what his bastard of a father had done to her.

And there he lay, looking pale as ever with his sunken, crazed eyes. His hair looked lifeless and Gene could have almost sworn it was turning grey in his near death. The heart monitor bleeped slowly as the ever decreasing green line lazily crept its way across the screen by his bed.

'Ah, 'unt...y'know I never really wanted to die in th' presence of a copper, but there you go.' He croaked, gesturing for them to sit down while his eyes moved appreciatively to rest on Alex. 'Dying in your presence though, darlin'...I'm not so upset about that.'

Gene's eyes grew hard, but Alex's hand on his arm relaxed him and reminded him that the man, however sick, was dying. 'What did yer want ter tell us, Crowley?' He asked evenly, steering him off the subject of Alex of which he seemed to be so fond.

Pete however, ignored him. 'Yer know the only thing I regret about dying is that I never got to give you a good, hard shag, love. God...it would have been _good_.' He drawled, his small eyes still fixed on her.

Alex swallowed the bile in her throat and like Gene; she reminded herself that he was dying while a throaty growl came from the back of Gene's throat. 'Listen, I know yer dying an all but hittin' on my girlfriend is only gonna speed that process up. Now tell us what yer wanted to say and we'll leave yer to die in peace.' He grunted.

'Gene!' Came Alex's hushed reprimand as she squeezed his arm painfully and he winced.

'It's alright, sugar. I'm dying, bastard like 'im is hardly going to hurt my feelings, love. I'll say what I wanted to say.' At this point, Pete began choking and coughing, the heart monitor began to splutter.

'I wanted to tell you again that I didn't do it. I didn't kill Samantha, sorry, but I couldn't go with you thinking I knocked off the ex-missus. I might do drugs and I might not be the nicest person, but I'm no murderer.' He forced out, his eyelids fluttering as he struggled to keep them open.

All of a sudden, this repulsive man seemed very weak to Alex as he coughed and lay there, helpless.

'Right, got it.' Gene grunted, thinking how it didn't really matter. They'd put Crowley out of the frame for murder a long time ago. He got up to leave, but Crowley tried to strain his neck up and called out.

'Wait – there's somethin' else.'

Gene sighed, and sat back down, looking at the pale man who was struggling for breath. 'Go on.'

'Yer probably think I'm a right bastard for ignoring Milly...but I didn't know what else to do. I'm stupid but I'm not stupid enough to poison her world with mine. I just want you to do one thing for me.'

'I'm not doing anything for yer, scum.' Gene muttered. He didn't care if Crowley had thought he was protecting his daughter, he'd still left Samantha with no leg to stand on and no money to bring the poor child up. That to his mind meant Crowley was a coward, end of story.

Pete once again ignored Gene and looked at Alex, though his stare was no longer lustful. 'Listen, I know I repulse you but please...don' tell Milly what a cowardly bastard 'er father was. She doesn't know about me and I want it to stay that way. Just let me die alone, knowing she won't find out.' He pleaded, his voice husky as he wheezed for breath.

It was this final, desperate plea that had Alex reaching out for his hand and nodding. 'I won't. I won't tell her, I promise.' She told him.

'What are yer doing, Bolly?' Gene whispered as Pete nodded and gave her a grateful look before closing his eyes.

Alex glanced at Gene. 'He's right, Gene. He does repulse me and he isn't the nicest man on the planet, but he's trying to do something decent. Just let him die in peace.' She whispered back, still holding Pete's hand.

* * *

They sat there in silence for five minutes, Alex holding on to Pete's hand until the very final bleep emitted from the heart monitor, and a different noise sounded – signalling that the patient had slipped away. Along with his life, Alex's hand left his and she stood up, nodding to Gene that they should go. They left quietly without a backward glance and made their way out into the fresh air.

'Hold on, Bolly.' Gene said, stopping her and pulling out a cigarette with a sigh. He lit it and brought it to his lips, taking a long drag.

'Do you think we did the right thing, staying until he died?' Alex asked quietly while Gene finished his cigarette.

Gene thought for a moment, then nodded. 'I suppose, Bolls. Maybe yer right, he was trying ter do somethin' decent.'

'I love you, Gene.' Alex suddenly said softly, looking at him.

Gene stubbed out his cigarette and looked up at her. 'I love you too, Alex.' He told her, reaching out for her hand and squeezing it. 'C'mon, let's go see what those prats have been up to.'

Alex smiled and nodded. 'Ok, then I suppose we better get on with interviewing Marley. We don't want him so insane that he's forgotten how to talk.'

Gene shrugged. 'That wouldn't be so bad.' He replied, getting into the Quattro after once again holding the door for her. 'We could just say he has mental problems and get him locked in a loony-bin.'

* * *

**Hope that was alright, I know you were all probably expecting an interview with either Johnny Crester or Marley, but I promise that comes next chapter! Please review. X =D**


	29. Nervous Wreck

**Hi, thanks as always for the great reviews. Here's the next chapter – I hope you like it and please keep those reviews coming! Whew – chapter 29, when I started this story I never thought I'd even get that far, let alone the 300+ reviews! Thank you all so much. X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes, if I did...let's just say I'd be richer, smarter and a genius!**

**Chapter 29 – Nervous Wreck**

* * *

'We got 'im, Guv! We got 'im!' Ray announced as both Gene and Alex re-entered CID. A triumphant smile was smeared over his smug face and Chris' face was a mirror image.

'What d'yer want, a flamin' medal?' Gene asked, throwing his long black coat over the rack. 'He's locked in the cells, yeah?'

Ray's grin fell and he glanced shiftily at Chris. 'Yeah, well...we put 'im in an interview room, thought you'd want ter talk to 'im.'

Gene sighed. 'Raymoundo, have you, or haven't you got a brain in tha' thick skull of yours? Me and Mrs Drop-er-knickers here are going ter talk to Terry Marley. Yer know, lanky bloke, cocaine addict...currently going crazy with a ticking clock?' He asked, fixing his hardest stare on the two of them. 'Which, by the way, was the idea of yours truly – not the sexy know-it-all over 'ere.'

Chris bit his lip and nodded. 'Right...I'll go put 'im in the cells, Guv.' He muttered, scarpering from the office, his eyes downcast.

Gene nodded. 'Good man, Christopher.' He said, clapping him on the back sarcastically as he went. 'Right, let's go, Bolly.'

As they made their way down the corridor to the interview room, Alex frowned and said, 'sexy know-it-all – that's a new one.'

Gene shrugged. 'Felt I needed some new nick-names for yer, Bolls. Why, don't yer like it? I thought it had a ring ter it.'

Alex laughed. 'It's fine, Gene. Come on, let's do this.'

Gene nodded and opened the door, taking a deep breath as he did so. 'In yer go, Bolly.'

* * *

Terry Marley was a wreck – and a nervous one at that. He sat in the seat behind the table, rocking back and forth while his maddened eyes stared at the clock, transfixed. 'Make it stop...make it stop. Need cocaine...make it stop.' He muttered as Gene and Alex took their seats.

'I take it yer ready to answer our questions now, yer little scumbag?' Gene asked, looking in astonishment at the twitching, guilt ridden man before them.

'Anything...just make it stop. Make it stop. Stop it....tick, tick, tick...stop the ticking. Bang, bang...make it stop...' Suddenly, his eyes focused and clamped themselves on Alex. He seemed to look at her as though she was a stranger, like he neither knew nor cared who she was. 'Please, can you make it stop?'

Alex glanced at Gene, then turned back to Marley and nodded. 'Yeah...I can make it stop. But you're going to have to answer some questions...truthfully this time.' She told him evenly, not knowing what to make of this different, driven-to-the-edge Marley.

He nodded frantically, hunger and insanity swirling in the dark depth of his eyes. 'Anything...just stop the ticking, stop, stop, stop, st...st...sto...stop it!' He stuttered angrily, staring desperately at her and Gene.

Gene rolled his eyes at Alex and sighed. 'Did you write this letter?' He questioned, pushing the letter over to him for the second time that day and leaning back in his chair.

Terry's eyes scanned over the paper, slower this time – Alex noted. Finally, he looked up, his eyes looking as little less confused. 'Yeah...it was me, I wrote it...' He told them shakily. 'I wrote it.' He repeated, this time it came out more as a snarl, some of the old, vicious Marley was obviously returning.

Alex nodded, cautiously reaching out to take the letter away. Suddenly, Terry's grubby hand clamped on her wrist, pulling her forward so her face was inches from his. Alex could smell his stale, heavy breath as it brushed over her face. She stared fearfully into his crazed eyes, not daring to move.

'Make it stop, bitch.' He said, licking his lips in a way that reminded Alex of a dog with Rabies. 'Or I'll snap your arm so fast that your pathetic little boyfriend won't have time to move.'

Alex let out a long, shaky breath. 'Terry...I can make it stop.' She reasoned, seeing the disorientation behind his angry pupils. 'But you have to let me go, and tell us the truth when we ask you the questions, ok?'

Gene sat there, tense as Alex tried to talk her way out of it. He didn't want to grab her and pull her back, wasn't that something she had once said – sudden movements unnerve suspects and make them more prone to lie? Something like that, anyway. Yes – he had listened to her, even back then. Why not – she didn't seem to notice him eyeing her up when she was babbling.

Slowly, Terry let go of Alex and let her sit back, anger still in his eyes. He couldn't get that sound out of his head! That annoying, persistent, picking little ticking noise... there were no clocks in prison cells...a small voice told him.

* * *

'I told Johnny Crester ter kill 'er.' He told them without even being asked, and even as he said it, it was as if the ticking were that little bit quieter. Or perhaps it was the shock at himself for confessing that was muting the infuriating sound. 'Couldn't have 'er in the way of a shipment as big as that...that was gonna make me rich, I was gonna move to Spain. Maybe get one of those nice villas near the coast.' He continued, staring at the table as his mind slowly grew giddy and the noise seemed ever quieter.

Alex looked at Gene and placed a finger over her lips, signalling for him to be quiet.

'I could have had a nice little early retirement, no more work...no more blood ships!' His voice grew angry and he threw his head back, glaring at the bare ceiling. 'Just drugs and booze and women!' He exclaimed before his head snapped forward to focus on Alex. '_Loads_ of women.' He told her, licking his lips.

'But then she had to get in the way! Her and Pete bloody Crowley – tosser!' He yelled, causing Alex to jump backwards in surprise as a spray of saliva came her way. 'So I got him ter kill her...then when you filthy _dogs_ came sniffing around, I went for Crowley. He was too dangerous to have alive.' He spat viciously, slamming his fist on that table. It was amazing – the ticking was almost completely blocked it out, it was just a normal tick...no names, no places. Nothing. Just a ticking noise. Not annoying in the slightest. And then Terry felt confident, too confident.

'It was shame really.' He added, looking up at Gene with tormenting eyes, his thin lips curled into a smirk. 'She was a pretty girl, a very pretty girl. Shame I didn't get to 'er before Johnny polished her off.'

That snapped him. Gene well and truly snapped. He'd sat, and he'd listened to Terry confess what he'd done almost as if he was admitting to having done some heroic act, not murdering an innocent woman and one his employees.

With a colossal _bang, _Gene had the table over on one side. His cigarette's and Alex's treasured tape machine strewn on the unforgiving floor. Before anyone could even shout out, Marley was against the back wall – Gene's long fingers gripped around his neck.

'You listen 'ere, you bastard. I don't know why yer so proud of yerself, because yer a coward! A filthy, lying coward!' Gene shouted, kneeing him in the balls.

Terry's face contorted in pain as he glared back at Gene. And then he did all he really could do in that situation, he merely spat in Gene's face.

'Oh, real hard, Marley! Way to fight; come on, yer not a man! I doubt you've even got yer own ball sack! Gene yelled in response, his face pulsing with anger as he released one hand from his neck to punch him around the face, resulting in a large bruise that he was sure would result in a black eye. He was glad.

'You're a coward, didn't have the fucking guts to even kill 'er yerself! No, you got little Johnny boy ter do yer dirty work for yer! And even with Crowley, yer hardly did a good job! Gave him a cocaine overdose? He only died this morning, you stupid arsehole! And he might not have! It's hardly what I call the perfect crime!' He kicked him again, this time in the shins.

'You good for nothing, low-life, dirt eating bastard!'

* * *

'Gene, stop it!' A pained cry came from behind them. Slowly, Gene twisted to take in a sight he would never forget for the rest of his life.

Alex, laid on the floor, blood pooling around her left leg. In his rage, when Gene had pushed the table over...it had fallen towards Alex and she hadn't been able to move quick enough. The heavy wood surface had crashed onto her leg, cutting into it and at least fracturing the bone... he'd hurt her.

Completely forgetting about the criminal in his hands, he let go and rushed over to her, immediately pulling the table back onto all four legs.

'Oh, God, Alex...Alex, Alex...' He murmured, gathering her into his arms on the floor and clamping a hand around her leg, feeling the warm blood soak his rough hands.

'Viv!' He bellowed at the door, before snapping his eyes back to Alex's face, constricted with pain.

'It hurts, Gene...' She whimpered, moving her hand to her bleeding leg.

'Guv?'

Gene looked up to see Viv, staring with horror at Alex and the blood stained tiles. 'What happened?'

'I bloody dumped the table on 'er, that's what happened!' Gene shouted, angry at himself. 'Just get that fucking bastard down in the cells and see that he never leaves 'em!'

Viv nodded hurriedly and roughly grabbed Terry, pulling him out of sight down the corridor. 'I'll ring an ambulance, Guv.'

Gene nodded and looked back at Alex again, placing a hand over her stomach. 'I'm so sorry, Alex...I...I'm sorry.' He muttered over and over again, not knowing what else to say.

He couldn't believe what he'd done. His Bollyknickers. His Alex...the woman he loved, who was carrying his baby. He hurt her, injured her...he'd pushed a table on top of her and hadn't even realised! What a bloody useless man was he?

'I'm a bastard; Bolly...I'm so sorry.' He whispered, swallowing his own contempt.

* * *

**There we go, hope it was ok. Please review! X =D**


	30. A Dream

**Hi, thanks for all your reviews, hope you like the chapter and please keep the reviews coming! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes…despite my strongly worded letter demanding the ownership rights, tee hee. =D**

**Chapter 30 – A Dream**

* * *

Gene had forgotten all about the fact he didn't like hospitals, the pungent smell of disinfectant didn't bother him at all as he sat there, on the generically uncomfortable chair…staring at Alex.

Because how could the smell, the appearance or the general idea of hospitals bother him when she was laid there, her eyes closed in drugged sleep, because of him? Her leg had been stitched up already, he hadn't been able to watch that but he was here now, holding her slightly cold hand and hating himself for his temper. She'd once said it would be the death of her, a long time ago…before they were even together and still at the stage of stealing glances at each other across CID when they thought the other wasn't looking.

'Can't tell yer 'ow sorry I am, Bolly.' Gene muttered, staring down at their intertwined hands. Even though her eyes were closed, he just couldn't bear to look at her face. 'We got 'im though, Bolls, ey? One more piece of shit off the streets.'

There was no response. Of course there wasn't, he told himself – some mousy haired nurse called Daisy had drugged her up to the high heavens with anaesthetic, she probably couldn't even hear what he was saying to her. 'Sorry.' He mumbled again anyway, brushing his coarse thumb over her pale hand.

* * *

'You can go in to see her now, Mr Hunt.' Daisy told him kindly, looking at him. Poor man, she thought. He'd been sat there in the corridor all night waiting for her to wake up, he hadn't moved to get a coffee or even go to the loo – and it was now eleven o'clock.

Gene sighed and looked up at her, standing up. Shaz was looking after Milly for him and he'd been waiting there for what felt like forever, he wasn't leaving this God-damned hospital until he'd seen that she was alright with his own eyes.

Daisy was right, she was awake. Her leg was now in a cast after the Doctor's had said there was a minor fracture to the bone, nothing too serious. 'Alex.' He said, taking a swift step forward and settling once again on the hard chair, taking her hand.

'What were you thinking, Gene?' Her voice was harsher than he had expected and her soft eyes had hardened to glare at him. He'd never seen such a helpless looking person sound so angry, she couldn't even move for heaven's sake!

'I'm sorry, Alex.' He muttered, swallowing his distaste for himself. 'I shouldn't have got so angry…shouldn't 'ave reacted to 'im and all that…I can't tell yer 'ow sorry I am.'

He looked up to see her eyes had softened a little. 'I know you didn't mean to hurt me, Gene…but you need to be more careful. I'm pregnant with your child for God's sake, didn't you think of that? Or was all you wanted to have your fingers around his neck?'

'I know, Bolls…yer don't have ter tell me that what I did was wrong. I know.' He replied guiltily, sighing. 'I can't believe I hurt yer, Alex…I can't believe I put you and the baby in danger. I'm so sorry.'

Alex sighed too and squeezed his hand; she could never stay mad at him for long. 'I know…sorry, don't worry, Gene…everything's fine.'

'No, it's not fine!' Gene exclaimed. 'I've injured yer and now yer have ter go around on crutches with a bloody great paper machier creation on yer leg! And it's my fault.'

Alex rolled her eyes and rubbed her thumb on his hand. 'Gene, I meant the baby. It's fine; I made them run some tests before they gave me the anaesthetic. And as for the cast…I suppose I'll live, I guess you're right – it is another piece of shit off the street.' She told him reassuringly. 'Marley, I mean. Not me.' She added with a smile.

Gene ignored the joke and looked up at her with surprisingly intense eyes. 'Marry me, Alex.'

Alex couldn't say anything. She just lay there, eyes wide and frozen. Every word in her head was gone, blown away by some invisible breeze. The only word that stuck was… 'Ok.'

'Really, you'd marry a bloody over the hill, borderline alcoholic, nicotine addict like me?' He asked, looking almost as surprised as she had when he'd asked her.

Alex laughed, the sound lighting up her eyes as she looked at him. 'No…I want to marry a loyal, trustworthy, funny and sexy-as-hell man like you.' She told him, squeezing his hand tightly.

'You'll honestly marry me?'

'Gene, why the hell did you ask if you only expected me to say no?'

Gene shrugged. 'I don't know…I just know I can't live without yer, Bolls. I love yer…' He replied quietly, looking down at their hands again.

Alex smiled and shifted herself with difficulty until she was sitting up. She leant forward, ignoring the protest from her leg and kissed him quickly on the lips. 'I love you too.'

'I'm sorry, Mr Hunt. But you'll have to go now, Miss Drake needs her rest. You can come back tomorrow, if you like.' A voice behind them said.

Gene turned and nodded before reluctantly dragging his hand away from Alex's. 'See yer, sexy know-it-all.' He told her, kissing her forehead.

'Bye, Gene.' Alex answered, a smile spreading over her face that didn't fall when he left the room and she heard the unmistakable sound of the Quattro screeching away. She was getting married…to Gene Hunt. She was going to be Mrs Alex Hunt! It was…it was a dream. It had to be. But then…it couldn't be.

* * *

'Molly…I'm getting married, love.'

Molly stood there, illuminated by a light with no source, surrounding her was pitch black darkness. The light shone around her like she was an angel…in Alex's mind, she was and always would be.

'I knew he'd look after you, Mum. I knew he loved you.' She replied softly.

Alex smiled. 'You did?'

Molly nodded knowingly. 'I know everything.' She said, tapping the side of her nose. 'And I knew he loved you…do you think I would have blown the candles out if I wasn't sure you were alright?'

Alex smiled again and shook her head gently. 'No…I love you, Molls. And…I'm not replacing you, with his baby…I promise. I'll always love you.'

'I'll always love you too, Mum. I've got to go now.'

'No, wait, Molly!'

But Molly shook her head. 'No…sorry, Mum. I've got to go…I'll see you again, just one more time.'

Alex frowned. 'When?'

'You'll see.' She replied again with that knowing smile.

* * *

**A little short, I know. But the next one will be longer – hope you liked it and please review! X =D**


	31. Family

**Hi, thanks as always for your encouraging reviews, it's great to see you're all still enjoying the story! Just a quick request, for any of you that also read my Hermione/Severus story – I'm thinking of starting another one in a while and I've put a poll on my profile concerning what to entitle it, could you please take a minute to quickly vote on it, I'd be very grateful! **

**Also, I know the Teletubbies weren't around in the 1980s, but I'm just going to leave it as Milly likes them. After all it is FanFiction; the point of it is that you can play around a little. So for this story, we're imagining that they do exist.**

**Now, on with the chapter!**

**Chapter 31 – Family**

* * *

Alex was bored. Very bored. Extremely bored. What on earth was she supposed to do all day with Gene gone and an empty house? She'd hoped Milly would stay behind with her, watching Teletubbies all day with her, back to back, would be better than this silent nothingness. But Milly had wanted to go in with Gene, her magazines were in the office and she never passed up an opportunity for a ride in the Quattro. Gene had thrown her an apologetic look as he went out of the house, the six year old clinging to him like an excited monkey.

Alex sighed, it wasn't so much the being alone that bothered her. She had the TV and Gene had a small store of books on his shelf; it was the doing nothing that bothered her. She hated not being active and having to sit at home, away from work. Due to her leg, the Doctor's had said it was probably a good idea if she stayed off work for a while, especially since policing was such a 'hands-on' job. She'd begged Gene to let her come in and just do some paper work but all he'd said was 'No, Bolls. You stay 'ere and get better, we've got Shaz fer paperwork and having you sat in the office all day would distract me. Besides, the steps up to the station are steep; I'm not catchin' yer every time yer fall.'

* * *

Gene meanwhile, wasn't much more active than Alex. The team had made a mutual decision not to interview Johnny Crester until Alex's leg was strong enough for her to use the crutches better and she could help them with her 'psychiatry' skills. So there wasn't really anything to do around CID to be honest. Shaz was writing up the interview with Terence Marley while Ray and Chris threw some football back and forth over the desks.

By lunchtime, Gene had had just about enough. Not having Alex to talk to was a torture, Milly was engrossed in her new colouring book, the darts had grown boring and that was the fifth bloody time Chris had misaimed and hit his window with that stupid ball.

'Oi, wonder Chris! Yer don't mind going outside and practicing that pissing crap aim of yours?!' Gene shouted after swinging the door of his office open.

Chris looked up at him, grabbed the ball and scarpered. 'Right...sorry, Guv.' He mumbled as Ray followed.

Gene sighed and turned to Shaz. 'I think we all might as well go 'ome, there's nothing ter do and I need ter go get something actually. Tell dumb and dumber that they can go home, yeah?'

Shaz beamed at him and nodded, quickly vacating her seat. 'Ok, thanks, Guv.' She replied, getting out of the office as fast as she possibly could.

'C'mon, Milly, I want you to come help me pick something out. Will yer do that for me?' Gene asked, crouching down to pick Milly up. He knew she could walk fine, but she always begged to be picked up anyway, so what was the point?

'Ok!' Milly exclaimed, grinning at him. 'Is it for Alex?' She asked as they walked out of CID and Gene flicked the lights off behind them.

He nodded. 'Yeah, it's for Alex.' He answered, inwardly smiling as they got into the Quattro just before the heavens opened and the rain began sheeting down.

* * *

The jewellers was a small one, with glass cabinets lining the side and a sophisticated cashier desk situated at the end. It smelt of clean metal and polishing cloths and Milly loved it. Everything sparkled on the blue velvet it sat on and she especially liked the glittering diamond ring Gene was currently peering at.

'I like that one.' She told him, placing a finger on the glass where the ring was.

Gene turned his head to face her. 'Do yer think she'd like it though?' He asked, looking back at the ring dubiously. It was very beautiful – a silver band with a perfectly sized, square diamond on top. But...there was something about it that didn't look right; he just couldn't see it on Alex's finger.

Milly just shrugged. 'I don't know.' She said, still gazing at it. She only liked it because it was so sparkly, she liked pretty things.

Gene grimaced and looked at the little girl again. 'What do you think she would like?' He asked her, straightening up and glancing around the jewellers.

Milly bit her lip and her little brow furrowed in concentration. After a few moments of thinking, she looked at Gene. 'She wears red a lot.' She told him.

Gene pouted, and then nodded. 'That's true.' He agreed. 'Let me just talk to this lady, ok?'

Milly nodded. 'Ok.' She said, going over to stare at the glittering diamond ring as Gene approached the cashier where an elderly woman was stood.

'Hello, dear.' She greeted with a smile. 'What are you looking for?'

'Um...an engagement ring...but, I'm not sure what ter get her, if yer know what I mean.' He told her, feeling a little out of his depth.

A wider smile spread across the woman's face. 'I see.' She replied, glancing at Milly. 'I heard your daughter said that the lucky woman wore red a lot.' She mentioned.

Gene nodded and rubbed his jaw nervously. 'Uh...yeah, she does. Have yer got any....uh...red, stones?' He asked, ignoring the comment about 'his daughter'. But...it was kind of like that...did he love her like a daughter? Gene was almost sure he did, he knew one thing for certain. He would kill for Alex and that little girl who wasn't even his.

The woman chuckled and smiled at him again, her eyes kind. 'Rubies, dear. Yes, what sort of price range are you looking at?'

Gene glanced around the shop, and seeing there was no-one else about, he leant over and whispered a figure in the woman's ear. Her eyes widened and she leant back, grinning. 'Ah...there is this ring; it's down in the holding rooms. It's very beautiful; do you want me to get it?' She asked, already stepping towards the door behind her.

Gene nodded. 'Yeah, ok.'

As Gene waited for the woman to return, he drummed his fingers on the surface top, thinking of the money he had left from his inheritance with which he'd used to buy the house. He never made a show of quite how much money he had stored away, he'd never really found much to spend it on. But now, he had Alex...and what better to spend it on than her?

The woman had returned with a small black box, her face anticipating a big sale. She simply placed the box on the surface top and opened it for him to see.

Gene's eyes drank in the ring and he could immediately see it on her finger. 'It's perfect.' He told her, smiling confidently. 'I'll take it.'

* * *

'Oh, Gene! Thank God you're home; you do not know how bored I've been!' Alex exclaimed, hobbling over to him on her crutches to press a kiss to his lips.

Gene smiled and bent down to Milly. 'Go on, remember the plan.' He whispered. Milly nodded and giggled before running off up the stairs to give Gene and Alex a moment to their selves.

Alex frowned, her eyes darting between the stairs and Gene. 'What plan? What's going on?' She asked, her face puzzled.

Gene smiled again, the expression making his rugged face look about five years younger. 'Look, Bolly!' He exclaimed, pointing behind her head.

Alex rolled her eyes and turned around to see what he was talking about, but there was nothing. Just the hallway and at the end, the door to the kitchen. Nothing unusual. 'What are you talking about, Gene? There's nothing there.' She said, turning back around.

'Got yer.' He replied, his eyes sparkling with some strange excitement as he held out the open black box to her.

Alex's eyes moved down from his face to the box in his hands, and gasped. Nestled in the black silk interior of the box was a ring. A slender band made of white gold and on top, a perfectly flat, glimmering ruby in a small oval shape and surrounding the tiny stone was even tinier diamonds, each one sparkling like miniscule water drops. 'Oh, Gene.' She sighed, tearing her eyes away from the ring. 'It's beautiful.'

'You like it?' He asked, taking the ring from the box and pocketing the box.

'I love it.' Alex told him, a wide smile spreading across her face and lighting up her eyes with uncontainable happiness.

Gene returned her smile, and without taking his eyes off hers, reached for her left hand and slid the ring onto her left finger. Glancing down, he knew he'd made the right choice; it was just so simply _her_.

Alex took all of one second to admire the glistening ring on her finger before looking at Gene again. 'Thank you.' She said softly. She shuffled forward, cursing her cast and crutches for ruining the romance and pressed her lips to his in a long, slow kiss.

Gene kissed her back, snaking two arms around his waist so she could stand up easier. With a rehearsed cry of 'congratulations!' Milly raced down the stairs and pushed her way between Alex and Gene. 'Eww, stop kissying!' She giggled, hugging both Gene and Alex's legs.

Alex looked down at the smiling little girl and motioned to Gene to pick her up; Gene did so and reached out another arm to hug Alex too. They stood there like that for a minute, just hugging, all of them wearing grins on their faces. Gene glanced over Milly's head and smiled, he had what he never thought he'd have. Family.

* * *

**That chapter was pretty much just fluff but I felt it was needed! Hope you liked it and please review! X =D**


	32. Insecurity

**Thanks for the support as always and I'm glad you all liked the last chapter. Here's the next chapter, I hope you enjoy it and please review! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes...Oh if only I did. **

**Chapter 32 – Insecurity**

* * *

It had taken two weeks for Gene to be confident in Alex coming into work on her crutches. Alex had wanted to go back a week ago, but he had insisted she stay at home until she could walk reasonably smoothly with the crutches. Alex could have sworn he was going soft.

It was as though the weather knew it was doomsday for the Samantha Jones case as the black storm clouds swirled above Gene and Alex while they got out from the Quattro. It cast a dark, gloomy mood over the pair, clearly signalling what was to come.

Alex never looked forward to getting a confession out of someone they were already sure had done it. And in the case of Johnny Crester, she was dreading it all the more. Because in some way, the type of suspects who sit there, deny everything and make suggestive comments towards her were almost easier to handle. But this, how was she supposed to deal with this?

From the evidence they had, Johnny already hated himself for what he'd done. He was a guilt ridden, regretful and scared murderer who had gone to the most extreme yet crazy lengths to tell the team that he had done it. But the one thing Alex couldn't get was the information about the drugs. It had helped, of course – but why? Why did he want to grass on Marley about the drugs, why not just come clean about the murder and have it over and done with? Or perhaps he had wanted to get back at him, gain revenge for the sin he had been made to commit.

Either way, Alex was not looking forward to the encounter as she hopped up the steps, Gene's hand resting at the base of her back warily, just waiting for her to fall. 'You alright, Bolls?' He asked as they got inside and he told Viv to get Johnny in an interview room.

Alex nodded. 'I'm fine, Gene. There's no need to get worried. Come on; let's get this over and done with.'

Gene smiled wryly. 'You just want to make sure no-one messed up yer desk.'

'That too.' She replied, chuckling a little.

'Don't worry, I told 'em that if they so much as put a hand near that desk it'd be off and fed to 'em in a sandwich before they could say stapler.'

Alex grinned and turned to him. 'Aw, how sweet.'

Gene raised an eyebrow. 'You have a twisted idea of sweet, Bolly. Milly, sweet. Chris and Shaz, sweet. Me?' He shook his head. 'I don't think so.'

Alex laughed and pressed her lips to his, kissing him hungrily as he responded, biting down on her lower lip almost viciously. 'Still think I'm sweet?' He growled.

Alex smiled and licked her slightly aching lip. 'Hm...not sure.'

Gene kissed her again – harder this time, taking clear control as his tongue battled hers, his hands firmly holding her to him possessively as he bit down on her lip before moving to her neck, sucking on the skin there. 'Now?'

Alex shook her head, slightly dazed. 'Definitely not sweet.' She confirmed, nodding in an attempt to clear her mind.

Gene smiled. 'Good.' He said, slipping an arm around her waist and opening the doors to CID.

* * *

Johnny looked like a fidgety mess when Alex and Gene eventually entered the interview room with Ray following behind. The couple took their seats while Ray leant against the back wall, arms crossed with a cigarette drooping from between his lips as he kept his eyes fixed on Johnny.

As Alex looked at Johnny, the guilt was evident in his watery blue eyes. It hung like a ghost on to his pupils as they darted about, his teeth chattering and fingernails tapping on the table – almost as though he was waiting impatiently for the inevitable.

Once Gene and Alex were settled, Gene's cigarette's and lighters laid before him carelessly and Alex's tape recorder, pen, pad and bagged evidence in a neat row, Johnny looked at them. The fear matched the guilt in his eyes and it almost surprised Gene, he wasn't used to interrogating scared suspects. The little shits were easier to deal with, if he was honest. But this....this was unknown territory.

_Let's just 'ope Bolly-Knickers knows what the hell she's doing...._He thought as Johnny's gaze fixed on him. His expression was as readable as Milly when she wanted sweets – He wanted this over and done with; he knew what was coming, and he wanted it over.

'Johnny,' Alex said, her voice careful, not wanting to unnerve him. 'You've been arrested on suspicion of assisting Terence Marley to traffic illegal drugs, for the murder of Samantha Jones and for perverting the course of justice.'

Johnny, instead of arguing the toss, or spitting in her face, merely looked down at the table and muttered between gritted teeth. 'I know.'

Gene leant slightly to the side and reached out an arm to retrieve the letter that Chris and Ray, in a stroke of success, had found in Marley's office. 'In this letter, it suggests that you were helping Terry in 'is little cocaine games, is that true?' He asked, taking it out of the plastic bag and sliding it across to him.

Johnny looked down at the letter, reading it through before he looked up. 'Yeah, it were written t' me.' He told them, swallowing and staring at the table again with the dull eyes of a man who knows he's messed up.

Gene nodded and took the letter back. 'How were yer involved?'

'We need the whole story.' Alex added as Gene frowned at the slight note of kindness in her voice. Crester was a murderer, regretful, but still a murderer; just another piece of undeserving scum.

Johnny slumped back in his chair and stared upwards, his lips going in on themselves as he sucked them in and his brown knitted together. 'Does it matter?' He asked, exhaling and looking at them.

Alex nodded. 'Yes, I'm afraid it does.'

He sighed and put his elbows on the table resting his head in them and running his fingers through his lank hair. 'I 'ad this girl, right? And...she were pretty nice, y'know, I liked her and all...'

Gene, Alex and Ray frowned. What did his apparently ex-girlfriends have to do with this? Whatever it was, it was something they didn't know about.

'Yes?' Alex pushed, shuffling her notepad about a little.

'I were out with her in a restaurant one nigh', it were going well until Marley came chargin' in....grabbed 'er by the scruff of 'er neck and dragged 'er out, kicking and screaming.'

Gene's frown deepened. 'Why?' He asked suspiciously.

Johnny sighed again, looking down. 'Turned out to be 'is bloody sister.' He replied, disgruntled.

Alex was surprised. 'He has a sister? Well why was he so interested in her love life, where is she now?'

'Whoa, Bolly, one question at a time.' Gene muttered under his breath, picking up his cigarettes and taking one out. He lit it and took a long drag, giving Johnny an inquisitive glance as he exhaled the smoke.

'Want one?'

Johnny shook his head instantly, eyeing the cigarettes warily. 'No, thanks. And I've no idea why he was so interested in 'er love life – just didn't approve of me apparently, said I were nothin' but a low-life; only good enough to build 'is bloody stupid ships.'

Alex raised an eyebrow, slightly confused. 'If he treated you so badly, and didn't let you go out with his sister, why on earth did you kill for him?'

Johnny shrugged his shoulders, sticking his bottom lip out a little. 'Dunno, this was two years ago now....way before I was even aware of the drugs thing... he started trustin' me a little more, 'ventually told me about the cocaine, said he thought havin' me on the team would be valuable.'

Gene heard a soft, knowing sigh come from Alex and he glanced to the right to see her nodding, that understanding look on her face again. 'And how did that make you feel, Johnny?' She asked softly, leaning forward slightly in order to connect with him.

'Trusted? Accepted? Included?' She asked, looking at him with a hint of sympathy.

Johnny's eyes shifted away down to the floor next to him and the hand that was resting on the table curled into a ball. Gene thought he could almost see his lower lip trembling slightly, as though in anger. But what did he have to be angry about? What was Alex up to now?

'All my life, they all hated me.' Johnny suddenly spat, looking back at Gene and Alex with hard eyes. 'They all said I'd go nowhere....that'd I'd never be of any use to anyone... that I was just some mistake.' His tone was malicious and hateful, but not violent. Just....angry. But it still wasn't obvious who that anger was aimed at.

'They laughed at me when I didn't want to take 'em – those stupid drugs they used to take, then they'd end up beatin' me, hittin' me round the 'ead.' He told them, spite lingering behind his voice as the veins on his hand began to stand out the more he tightened it into a fist.

'But why would I want to be like them?!' He asked, his voice a little louder now as he swallowed his contempt for the people who'd made him like this. 'Why would I want to end up so fucking high every night that I'd beat my own fucking son!?' This last part came out as a shout and his shoulders began quaking slightly, his fist on the table trembling along with his lower lip.

Alex let out a long shaky breath and she cautiously reached forward a hand to cover his shaking fist. 'Johnny, look at me.' She said quietly, her eyes wide as his fist began to calm a little under her touch. 'Just...look at me, it's alright.'

Slowly, Johnny turned around to face Alex, her eyes looking into his. 'Your parents...is that what they did? Told you that you were a nobody, and took drugs, then beat you? Is that why you don't really like drugs, despite what you did, Johnny? Why you don't even like cigarettes?' She asked softly, her eyes gentle as she glanced at the cigarettes. One of which he had refused with strange fervour a minute ago.

Again, very slowly, Johnny nodded and then looked down. 'Yeah. It is.' He muttered, moving his fist away and spreading it out flat on the table. 'All my life, till I was sixteen and moved out....they hated me; they wanted to make me feel like shit. And they took that fucking cocaine and tried to make me have some.....but I saw what it did, the way it made people. I didn't want to be like them.' His voice was almost a sob now, and Alex could have sworn she saw small tear forming on the corner of his eyelashes.

'Johnny, do you want a minute?' She asked, pulling her hand back across the table and resting it on her lap.

Johnny nodded. 'Yeah...yeah....' He muttered. Then... 'I'll....I'll get life, won't I?' He asked shakily, his eyes now filled with fear.

Alex bit her lip and stood up along with Gene. 'It doesn't look good.' She answered with sad honesty before leaving the room with Gene and Ray, shutting the door behind her gently.

* * *

'Well, we weren't expecting that.' Alex said with a sigh, forcing her hands into her pockets.

'I'm going for a fag break.' Ray muttered, making his leave even though there was already a cigarette in his mouth.

'No, we weren't, Bolls.' Gene replied, lighting up a cigarette too.

Alex shook her head, a small frown forming. 'He's insecure because of what they did to him...they flawed him. And I think we're going to have to take this interview very carefully, I think there are pretty deep rooted reasons why he allowed himself to kill Samantha.'

Gene nodded his head and took a long drag. 'Let's go see how Milly's doing, just for five minutes, then go back in. I'll get Viv to keep an eye on him.'

Alex nodded too and sighed again. 'I never expected it to be this hard.' She admitted, leaning back on the wall behind her so she didn't have to hold onto the crutches quite so much.

Gene shook his head and stepped forward to her. 'No, me either, Bolls.' He answered with a grimace. 'Come on.' He said, nodding down the corridor.

'Coming.' Alex agreed, following him after glancing in the thin window at Johnny. He was sat, hunched up in the chair and staring blankly at the floor, looking as though every bad memory he possessed was running through his head.

* * *

**Thanks for reading, hope that went alright and I'll have more out as soon as possible. X =D**


	33. Fallen Faith

**Thanks as always for the reviews. Sorry for the delay on this one, the amount of tests I've had at school is just ridiculous – plus it was my birthday yesterday so I took some time out to celebrate that! Hope you like the chapter and please review! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I did ask the BBC if they'd give me the ownership rights for Ashes to Ashes for my birthday....but they said they couldn't and told me I'd have to make do with a little figurine of Gene instead. :( **

**Chapter 33 – Fallen Faith**

* * *

Milly reluctantly clambered out of Gene's arms and looked up at him and Alex, her bottom lip protruding slightly. 'Can we go to Luigi's again tonight?' She asked, toying with the end of the plait Shaz had put her hair in.

Gene glanced at Alex who nodded, the corner of her red lips curving up slightly. He turned back to the little girl and nodded too. 'Yeah, if yer really want some of 'is ridiculously inedible pizza.'

'Gene!' Alex exclaimed softly, nudging him in the ribs with an elbow.

'What?' Gene asked, looking at her. 'Only tellin' the truth, Bolls.'

Alex rolled her eyes and pulled one of her crutches upright. 'I'm going to the toilet, Gene. Then I suppose we better get back to Johnny. I don't want to leave him too long.' She told him before hobbling out of CID and down the corridor.

* * *

Gene quietly approached the women's toilets, throwing careful glances about him as he went, checking there was no-one near. Once he reached the wooden door, he glanced behind him one last time and then pressed his ear to the door. There was the solitary sound of a tap running coming from within, but that was it. Hesitating for a moment, Gene glanced at the door handle, placed his hand on it, and entered.

Alex jumped when he came in, splattering cold water on the floor where her hands were wet and grabbing her crutches tighter. 'Gene! What are you doing in here?'

Gene gave her a coy smile and leant back against the wall behind him, crossing his arms and letting his long legs extend out in front of him. 'You never look at the sign on the door.' He reminded her, taking a glance at the watch on his wrist. 'Besides...I figured we had ten minutes.'

Alex's lips couldn't help but tug up into a smile as she walked towards him, reasonably smooth on her crutches. She barely needed them now. 'Oh yeah? And what do you suppose we do with that time, Mr Hunt?' She asked in a low voice, stopping in front of him as she looked at him from under thick lashes.

Gene smirked and placed both hands on her waist, tugging her towards him so she was stood just two inches away. 'You got a new top on, Bolly?' He murmured, glancing down at the dark green shirt she was wearing.

Alex's eyes darted down to the plunging neckline and back up to meet Gene's darkened eyes. 'Why, do you like it?'

'Mm.' Gene agreed absentmindedly, sliding a hand up to cover her breast as another snaked down to her backside. 'S'nice, Bolls.' He muttered before pressing his lips to hers in a hungry kiss, his hands roaming over her body before they broke away, the air in between them mingling as short, ragged breaths emitted from Alex's slightly agape mouth.

'We really should....' Alex started, but Gene was grinning at her wickedly and her resolve was beginning to weaken. 'Get back.....you know....' Gene began trailing kisses from her neck down the deep neckline of her shirt, one hand still resting over the curve of her arse.

Finally, she muttered, 'sod it' and crashed her lips to his as he responded all too eagerly. Pushing her back against the opposite wall, Gene's hand strayed to the buttons of the shirt he had complemented just a moment ago, popping one out of the hole to display a black and green lace bra. His lips never left hers as she tugged enthusiastically at the knot of his tie, annoyed grunts emitting from her as it proved harder to undo than usual....

'Oh my God....'

Gene's lips froze on Alex's and his hands dropped from her chest immediately as he spun around, standing in front of Alex so as to disguise her displayed bra. Standing there, with a shocked expression on her face was Stephanie Koyle, one of Shaz's friends from the 'plod department', as Gene called it.

She was staring; mouth agape, at Gene and Alex. Her eyes darted between his face and hers; taking in Alex's flushed cheeks and messy hair, added to the loose tie around Gene's neck and the slight bulge in his trousers....

'Oh my God,' she said again, hurriedly fumbling for the door handle, 'I'm so sorry....' She said, staring at the floor while her face burned. She pulled the door open and almost tripped on her way out, mumbling apologies.

Once she'd gone, Gene hung his head and groaned. 'Shit.'

Behind him, Alex let out a small giggle and began doing her shirt back up. 'I think we better get back to the interview, Gene.' She told him quietly, smoothing down her hair while looking self consciously in the mirror.

Gene let out a slightly aggravated sigh and pulled his tie back up. 'Flamin' plod.' He muttered, running a hand through his own hair.

Alex smiled and came up behind him, leaning over his shoulder. 'Don't worry, Gene...' She whispered in his ear, placing a hand on his upper arm, 'we can pick this up later....'

* * *

The familiar stale smell of the interview room crept up Alex's nose as she entered along with Gene, took her seat and once again laid out her evidence. Gene had tactfully kept his cigarettes in his pocket on Alex's instruction and he subtly edged his chair away from hers in order to avoid any distraction. To be caught by Stephanie in the toilets, quite obviously aroused, was embarrassing enough...he could do without it in the middle of an interview.

Alec cleared her throat softly and masked her face with a kind of professionalism that made Gene inwardly groan. Did she have to look so damn sexy _all_ the time? 'Johnny,' she started quietly, pressing the record button on the tape recorder, 'this trust that Terry had in you....how did that lead to you supporting something that you so obviously hate?'

Johnny looked up from his quivering hands and stared at the back wall, there was some kind of fear lurking in his expression, like he was ashamed of whatever it was he was going to say. 'He accepted me.' He said simply, his voice surprisingly even. 'He didn't make fun of me 'cause I didn't want t' take the things...didn't hold it against me....eventually put me in charge, y'know, of the unloading.'

Alex nodded and absentmindedly put her head on one side in that annoyingly sympathetic gesture that people do subconsciously when you tell them your pet has died, or your boyfriend broke up with you. 'And why did he do that, do you think? Why didn't he care that you didn't like drugs?' She asked, taking the pen from between her lips and biting it slightly as she observed his reaction.

Johnny frowned and his eyes focused on Alex. 'I dunno....he just didn't. It don't matter why he did it.'

Gene stifled a chuckle. The expression 'it doesn't matter why' just didn't sit with his Bolly. 'It does matter why, son.' He said, resting his arms on the edge of the table as he looked at Johnny. 'Because I don't reckon he didn't mind just because he was a nice guy...do you? Don't reckon he put you in charge out o' the goodness of 'is heart.' He challenged.

Alex nodded and sighed quietly. 'Did you ever think that he might be taking advantage of you, Johnny?'

Johnny's frown deepened and he looked, confused and a little angered, at them. 'What? What are you talking about? I know he wasn't a nice guy, and in the end he made me do a terrible thing....' He broke off there, his voice filling with guilt. He quickly looked down at his hands again, his lips in a hard, straight line.

Alex looked at him for a moment with a gentle expression on her face before speaking again. 'Johnny... he needed someone to rely on; someone who wouldn't mess up the shipments for his own personal gain.'

Beside her, Gene had caught on and he nodded, somewhat surprised at himself that he actually knew what she was talking about for once. _There's an achievement for yer..._ he thought, inwardly chuckling. He sat up a little straighter and leant one arm on the table. 'And havin' you dead set against drugs was like a dream come true.' He added, feeling almost sorry for the quivering man before him. _Almost_ sorry.

'He knew you wouldn't steal any of the cocaine while it was being unloaded....that's why he put you in charge.' Alex finished softly.

There was a long silence then as Johnny just stared at his hands, the hard set of his lips becoming tighter and tighter. Eventually, he looked up at Alex slowly, his eyes filled with the hurt of betrayal.

'He used me....didn't he?' He asked in barely a whisper, as though he were afraid of the answer.

Alex let out a slow sigh and bit her lip before replying. 'Yes. I think he did.'

The betrayed look in Johnny's eyes was drowned in a tidal wave of anger as they darkened, his hand curling up into a fist once again. 'He made me feel like I was accepted.....like 'e trusted me to do somethin' important......like I were useful for once in my life. Like someone actually wanted me aroun'....' He told them through gritted teeth, his dirty fingernails digging into the coarse flesh of his palm. 'And 'e just used me. All that time.....then when he got scared about his precious cocaine....' Johnny's voice grew vicious and he snarled the name of the drug he hated. 'He persuaded me ter do 'is dirty work.....'

Alex and Gene didn't know what to say. Alex was filled with some kind of pity for the man in front of her as his whole life fell apart before him. Everything he'd clung to, that trust that Terry had given him.... it was all a lie. Alex flashed back to how she felt when Pete had left, when he'd said he was in love with someone else and that he'd never really wanted to marry her anyway. He just didn't want to make a bastard out of the kid.....but that hardly mattered to him, it came out a girl. He'd packed his bags and left....leaving nothing but a broken heart and a crying baby.

She'd felt hurt. More than hurt.....she'd felt empty. Like everything that had made her life worth living was gone....as if she had relied on his love, and then to find out it wasn't even real. It was soul destroying.

Gene glanced at Alex for a moment and was confused to see a tear building in the corner of her eyes as she stared blindly at Johnny's hunched up form. He was bent over himself as though to shield himself from the hurt....Alex remembered doing a similar thing.

'Bolly?' He asked softly, cautiously reaching out a hand to rest on her arm. 'What's wrong?'

Alex shook her head, refusing to look at him. But as she did so, a small tear dropped from her lashes and wound its way down her cheek. 'Nothing....I'm fine.' She told him hurriedly, brushing it away.

Gene turned to look at Johnny, but he hadn't moved. 'Stay here.' He muttered before sliding his hand down to Alex's and taking it in his grip. He tugged on it and pulled her up, she was silent as he lead her out of the room – telling herself to get a grip, that it was a long time and she had more important things to be focusing on.

'Gene, I'm fine.' She insisted quietly once they were outside the interview room.

Gene frowned and took her face in both hands. 'No you're not. What's wrong?' He murmured, brushing his thumb over her cheek where another tear had just fallen.

Alex shook her head slightly and blinked. 'Nothing, it doesn't matter.' She replied, looking down.

'Alex...' Gene warned her in a low voice, tilting her head up to make her look at him.

Alex sighed and bit down on her lip. 'His whole world is falling apart Gene.....everything he relied on, that trust that Marley put in him, the feeling of acceptance....it was all a lie and it's....' She trailed off, shaking her head again.

After a second of silence, Alex looked up at him again. 'That's what Pete did. I thought that his love and Molly was all I needed. Then he told me he didn't love me.' She whispered, almost fearfully. 'A whole two years and all he'd done was pretend.....said I was good in bed, that's all. Actually....he said something a little cruder than that.....but it doesn't matter....' She added, her bottom lip quivering slightly and then, before Gene knew it a heart wrenching sob had burst from her and she'd fallen forward only for him to pull her closer, wrapping his arms around her and holding her head against his steady heartbeat.

'Shhh....' He murmured, pressing his lips to her hair as her body shook in his arms, her hands gathered up against his chest. His shirt smothered her hiccups and Gene just stood there, anger at her ex-husband coursing through him. How could anyone do that to his Bolly? First he'd raped her when she was too busy with Molly to give him what he wanted....and now this. He had a good mind to look the bastard up and have him in the cells.

'S'alright, Alex.' He muttered, pressing a kiss to her hair again as he inhaled her scent. 'He's not 'ere....I won't let anyone hurt you.'

* * *

**I know! You're probably mad at me because I still haven't finished the interview, but I promise it will wrap up next chapter! Hope you liked it all the same and please review! X =D**


	34. The Truth at Last

****

Hi, I know this update has been a while coming but it's here now! Hope you like it and please, please review at the end to tell me your thoughts. X =D

**Disclaimer – Was hoping the BBC would change their minds and make it a belated birthday present – but nothing, nada, no ownership documents. Or maybe the Royal Mail is being itself again.....=D**

**Chapter 34 – The Truth at Last**

* * *

Alex sniffed one last time and looked up at Gene, her body still cradled against his. 'Thank you, Gene.'

'What for?' Gene asked, still not letting go of her. He liked the feel of her like this, pulled up against him. He felt like everything he cared about was bundled up in his arms...it was comforting, strangely.

Alex smiled weakly and buried her face in his shoulder, inhaling the subtle scent of soap and aftershave. 'For being you.' She mumbled, bringing her hands up from against his chest to rest around his neck.

Gene pressed his lips into her hair, taking a second to allow the citrusy smell of her shampoo to intoxicate his senses. 'No problem, Bolly.' He muttered, his hands slipping down from her back to her hips. 'Besides....yer know that Pete of yours was a bastard....how dare he say yer were good in bed?' His hands wandered down over her denim covered arse. 'Yer couldn't ever be anything short of mind-blowing.' He whispered, pressing him closer to her as his face got lost in her hair.

She laughed at that at that a little, standing back from him a small way. 'There's something amazing about you, Gene Hunt.' She said softly, her arms still around his neck.

Gene raised an eyebrow. 'Oh yeah?'

Alex nodded, smiling slightly. 'How is it, you always know the right things to say to cheer me up....yet those things are almost always sex orientated?'

Gene's lips curved up into a smirk, his fingers now tracing over the invisible line of her knickers. 'S'not my fault, sexy-knickers....seems it's the only way to cheer you up. Mention sex and you perk right up.'

Alex laughed, hitting him lightly on the chest. 'That's not true!' She exclaimed quietly, looking up at him.

'Alright, alright. Keep yer knickers on!' Gene replied, abandoning her backside to cover her hands with his. 'Mind you...that could make things rather difficult...' He mused, a cheeky glint in his eye as he gave her his best boyish grin.

Alex rolled her eyes and untangled herself from him, running a hand through her hair. 'Come on, we've got work to do.'

Gene nodded and went to open the door for her. 'After you, Bolls.'

Alex smiled and whispered to him as she passed him. 'Only so you can look at my arse.'

'Got it in one, Bolls. Got it in one.' He replied, just as quietly.

* * *

Johnny's eyes were expressionless as he looked up at them both, his hands still curled into loose fists on the table. He began talking before Gene or Alex could ask him anything. He spoke quickly, as though he wanted everything over with.

'I got that letter one night,' he told them, nodding towards the bagged letter in front of Alex. 'At first I said I wouldn't do it, that he couldn't make me....I went round to 'is office straight away and slammed it on the desk....said he wanted me to be in charge of the shipments and that were all I were doin'. I weren't some hit man.'

Alex nodded, briefly touching the letter. 'And that's how the letter ended up back in Terry's hands?' She asked, a few things clicking into place in her brain.

Johnny nodded, staring down at his hands. 'But he persuaded me ter do it....said he'd make sure I weren't caught. He told me he 'ad all the stuff and he could lend me 'em. You know, the balaclava and the gun and stuff.'

Gene nodded, his brow furrowing slightly. 'What made yer do it though, Johnny? Yer didn't have ter do it, there's such a thing as free will, yer know.' He questioned harshly, still wondering what weakness could have possessed him.

'I don't know....but he said it'd be alright – that it were necessary. He said he'd pay me for it.....thousand pounds 'e said.' His lips went tight. 'I still got the money. Yer can have it, do whatever with it. I don't want it.' He added, his fingers tapping slightly on the wooden table.

Alex let out a sigh, her hand toying with her biro. 'So you killed her?

Johnny paused, then nodded. 'In the end.'

Gene frowned, his hand wandering towards his pocket but he thought better of it. One thing was for sure, he was having a bloody cigarette when he got out of here. 'What do yer mean, in the end?'

Johnny looked down, biting his lip hard. 'I tried to drag it out...tried to warn her away – make her run away, y'know?'

'But why?' Gene asked, still puzzled.

Alex sighed. 'Don't you understand, Gene? He didn't want to kill her, so he put it off; he tried to avoid it by making her run away. He thought that would solve the problem, but it didn't work.' She paused to look at Johnny. 'Is that right, Johnny?'

He nodded, his fists curling tighter. 'I thought maybe she'd run away and I could say she'd gone missing, that she wasn't a threat anymore. I thought that if I threatened her, if I kept giving her the letters and all that she would just disappear. It didn't work.'

Alex nodded slowly. 'So when did you kill her?'

Johnny took a long, deep swallow, the sound echoing in thick atmosphere. 'I killed her as soon as Marley found out she wasn't dead yet. I took the stuff, went up there and......she was so scared.' He took a deep breath, his head coming up to stare between Gene and Alex at the back wall, eyes haunted with guilt.

* * *

'I'll never forget that knowing look in 'er eyes when she opened the door. She were so frightened, yet there was some sort of intelligence....like she knew she was about to die. She must have known 'cause she turned around and shouted out to 'er daughter, told her to go in the bedroom. Then she looked back at me with some sort of plea in 'er eyes, begging me not to hurt 'er daughter.'

Alex bit her lip as her eyes begun to sting. Remorse was written all over Johnny's face and it was obvious he was forcing the words out – words he so wanted to say, but they hurt him. Because they reminded him of what he'd done.

'Then she just....stood aside and let me come in. Just like that. She were ever so calm about it – I think she was trying to protect her daughter, if she'd have fought; she'd have come out.... Then she just stood there, staring at me. I know she was trying to see if she could work out who I was, I had the balaclava on you see.'

There was silence in the room, for everyone knew what happened next. Two shots had been fired, hitting Samantha Jones in the neck and the waist. Johnny was inexperienced with a gun – he hadn't known where to aim. She had fallen sideways against the wall, knocking over the telly as she did so before she finally slumped over the coffee table, causing it to tip over and leave her lying on the floor. They didn't need Johnny to tell them that. But there was one thing plaguing Alex.

'Johnny...there were fibres under her nails, suggesting she'd put up a fight....' But she trailed off, remembering the throws on the sofa. 'Oh....'

Johnny nodded. 'She didn't fight....but I didn't know where to shoot her and she ended up falling all over the place...she didn't scream though. Just kept her lips tightly closed, her eyes constantly fixed on me.' He paused, his fingernails once against digging into his hands as his eyes grew hard with self loathing.

'I remember the moment she stopped breathing. She looked at me, her eyes so alive considering the rest of her body....and she just whispered '_don't you dare hurt her'. _Just five words....' Johnny trailed off as his head snapped downwards and the veins began to become prominent on the back of his hand.

'I murdered her....and then I left, posted that note telling y' where to find her and then just....disappeared. Went to stay just outside London for a bit....then I saw yer all on the news, they said yer were investigatin' it....I finally saw my revenge. I'd tell yer about the cocaine.'

He slowly looked up at them, anger in his eyes. But this time, it wasn't directed at himself. 'I could kill 'im for what he did to me, for what 'e made me do. _I could kill him_.' His words came out between gritted teeth and both Alex and Gene were sure he meant every word of it.

Gene grimaced and stood up. 'Sorry, mate. Can't let yer do that. Besides, he'll be going down too. Turns out he murdered Crowley too, so yer both getting what yer deserve.' There was little mercy in Gene's words as his hand itched towards his pocket. He was impatient to get out of there, away from the mess.

Alex stood up too and looked down, slightly less harshly at Johnny. 'I'm sorry, Johnny. But that's the way it is.'

'I know.' Johnny muttered. 'I deserve it.'

* * *

Once Gene had barked to Viv to get Johnny in the cells, he grabbed his cigarettes and lit one, taking a long, deep drag. And for once, Alex didn't complain.

Instead, she just sighed deeply. 'Why are we still doing this Gene?' She asked quietly.

Gene stopped inhaling smoke and looked up at her. 'What do you mean?'

'Well....Johnny was falling apart in there, Gene. He hates himself for what he did, and he hates Marley. Everywhere we turn, there's nothing but hatred and crime and spite....why do we surround ourselves with it?'

Gene sighed and put out his cigarette, taking a step towards her. 'We still do it because someone has to, Bolls. There's always got to be some poor sods at the end of the day who lay down the law, fight against everything that's wrong....and end up screaming at it all.' He paused, capturing her eyes with his own.

'And those poor sods are me and you, Bolls. Me and you.'

Alex smiled slightly and brought a hand up to run down the side of his face. 'I love you.' She whispered, stepping closer to him as she brought her other hand up to cradle his neck. 'Always.'

Gene pouted and rested his hands on her waist, pressing his lips to hers in a soft kiss that told her everything she needed to know. His hands caressed her sides lovingly as his tongue stroked hers, their lips touching. 'Love you too.' He murmured as they broke apart, his hands tangling in her hair as he pulled her forward into a slightly more urgent, rougher kiss.

They stood there like that for a while, just kissing each other and revelling in the taste of each other; the other's body beneath their hands. And when they broke apart, Gene's hand resting on her still flat stomach where he knew a tiny baby was growing, he whispered. 'C'mon, Bolly. Let's get Milly and go eat some shit pizza.'

* * *

**I hope that I didn't disappoint with the interview ending. Just a quick warning now – the next chapter will be the last. Though I will do a epilogue after that, so technically it's the second to last. **

**I am however, afraid to say that I won't be writing a sequel to this story. I feel that once it's finished, I want to leave it that way and let it stand alone as my favourite Ashes to Ashes story that I've written. I really have loved writing it but I feel it should remain on its own. But don't worry, my muse isn't expired and I'm sure you will get something more from me in the future once some of my other stories are finished!**

**Anyway, it's not over yet – please review! X =D**


	35. The Big Day

**Hi, thanks as ever for your reviews and support! Here's the penultimate (I love that word :P) instalment to this story – it's set about two weeks from the end of the last chapter, just so you know. **

**Another thing; I've already planned out my next Ashes to Ashes story and I'll be posting the first chapter for it right after posting this. It'll be called 'Rock 'n' Roll Suicide' after the David Bowie song. Enjoy this chapter and please review! X =D**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes, wish I did! **

**Chapter 35 – The Big Day**

* * *

Gene woke to someone's cold fingers running across his bare chest, sending shivers running through him. His eyes opened a little way to see Alex laid, looking at him as her hand ran over his chest.

'Morning.' She murmured, leaning forward to press her lips to the base of his throat. 'C'mon, we need to get up.' She told him, but made no move to leave the bed herself.

Gene frowned at her and rolled her over, his hands resting on her waist. 'Why?' He asked, distracted as he trailed kisses from her neck to the corner of her mouth, his hand slipping down to hold hers, where his ring resided.

Alex smiled and sat up, pulling the covers with her. 'Milly, meeting with the social worker....possibly adopting her. Ring any bells?'

Gene smirked and dragged her back down, kissing her soundly. 'Vaguely....'

Alex rolled her eyes and brought her hands up to push him off her. 'Come on, Gene. Get up.' She ordered firmly as she got out of bed herself and crossed the room to the wardrobe.

'Nice arse, Bolly!' Gene called after her before reluctantly dragging himself out of the bed and trudging into the bathroom.

* * *

Two hours later and Alex, Gene and Milly were sat in a cosy, yellow room at a community centre with a plump social worker who kept shuffling papers and eyeing Gene suspiciously over her spectacles. 'So....you're both the police officers who found Milly with her dead mother?'

Gene glanced at Alex before tugging nervously at his tie. 'Uh...yeah, we found 'er and she was pretty upset and she wanted ter stay with me, refused t' leave...and we've looked after 'er ever since.' He told the woman.

She nodded but still frowned at him slightly, as though she didn't trust him. 'And did you ever think that perhaps Milly would be better placed in professional care, considering the circumstances?'

For this, Alex cut in. 'Miss Higgins, I'm a trained psychologist, I have a degree in it. I myself also lost my parents at a very young age, as did Gene...we both understood what Milly was going through and helped her best we could.'

Milly nodded and smiled brightly at the woman. 'Gene told me about the angels, and the clouds and how Mummy was waving and would always love me.' She said, trailing off when the woman looked surprised at her.

Miss Higgins nodded curtly and shuffled more papers, pushing her glasses further up her nose. 'Both of you have quite busy jobs with long and unreliable hours – I hear that you've been taking Milly to the station....I hardly think a busy police station is the place for a small child grieving the loss of her mother. Do you?'

Alex shook her head, her dislike for the social worker growing by the minute. 'We looked after her best we could and always made sure she was safe and in responsible care. We kept the case well away from her and spent as much time with her as we could. Of course, if we were to become Milly's legal guardians, we would start looking to get her back into school, and a good one at that.'

The social worker nodded yet again and turned her gaze to Gene. 'You and Ms Drake are engaged and expecting a child of your own, are you not?' She paused and glanced at Alex patronisingly. 'I'm not sure you understand the pressure that bringing up an adopted six year old, and a newly born baby can bring....I wouldn't want Milly to be caught up in a turbulent family life.'

At this, Alex had endured quite enough from the woman. 'Not to be rude, Miss Higgins, but I have had a daughter before. And when she was six months old, my husband left me – I could have crumbled, but I didn't. I continued bringing my daughter up and also juggled a difficult career in the Met while doing so. I think I understand the....' she coughed slightly sarcastically, '_pressure_ that children can bring.'

Miss Higgins pursed her lips and looked at Gene again. 'Mr Hunt...you're known in the policing world as quite a strong and sometimes violent character. Are you really the best guardian for a young child like Milly?'

Gene frowned, a pout forming on his lips. 'I wouldn't say I was violent, Miss Higgins – it's a cruel, cruel world out there and someone's got to keep the villains away from young children like Milly. I'd guard 'er with my life....I think that's a pretty good reason for me ter become 'er guardian.'

And so it carried on. Miss Higgins asked question after question, constantly testing both Alex and Gene's patience with the whole system. The atmosphere in the suddenly claustrophobic room became thick and tense, their answers coming out almost robotically as they tried to convince the impossible woman that they should look after Milly legally.

And throughout all this, Milly just sat there, glancing with worried eyes between Gene, Alex and the weird lady who she really didn't like. She kept saying bad things about Gene, and some horrible things to Alex too....she didn't understand, why didn't the nasty woman want her to stay with them? Why did she want her to live in a horrible home where they throw things at you and you get called an orphan and where there were no pink wafers?

Eventually, it became too much for poor little Milly and she just stood up, a determined look on her tiny face. 'Please....Gene and 'Lex have been really nice to me and they give me pink wafers and take me to the park and they make me happy....and I really want to stay with them because I don't want to be where I don't know anybody, but I know Gene and Alex and they're a bit like my new Mummy and Daddy. Though I already have a Mummy and she loves me very much but she's gone now and I really miss her and I don't want to go away from Gene and....' She trailed off, tears spilling from her frantic eyes and splashing onto her cheeks.

Miss Higgins stared at Milly, paralysed in some strange state of shock for a moment before standing up and picking up the papers that she'd been continually shuffling and flicking through. 'Right,' she said, looking down at them over her glasses, 'I'm going to have to go talk to the board about your case, and we'll be through to see you in around.....' she glanced at the clock, 'an hour.'

With that, she strode from the room, leaving them alone with a crying Milly and a water dispenser that sat, dripping in the corner.

Milly turned to look at Gene, wide eyed and tearful. 'Are they going to take me away?' She asked.

Gene looked at her, allowing her to wrap her small arms around him and press her wet face to his chest. 'No.....don't worry, I won't let them. It's gunna be alright.' He told her. But even as he said the words, he glanced over her light auburn hair at Alex, his eyes containing something Alex was sure she'd never seen in them before. Fear.

Fear of losing the little girl in his arms, fear of something bad happening to her....fear of that idiotic social worker telling the board they were unfit to adopt her....

* * *

A tense and silent hour followed. Milly clung to Gene for all she was worth and Alex sat there, wrapped up in her own thoughts as she fiddled with the beautiful ring on her finger. Suppose they didn't win? What if Milly was taken from them? What would happen to her...what would happen with them? She found herself unable to imagine life without the little girl who had so quickly become a part of her and Gene's life......

Eventually, the door opened with excruciating slowness and Miss Higgins re-entered, this time bringing a serious yet kindly looking man with her. They both sat down behind the desk.

'Mr Hunt, Ms Drake,' the man addressed them, smiling at Milly, 'we have reviewed your case and thought about what is best for the child involved as that is always our first priority.'

'And?' Alex asked, her heart thudding in her chest as she reached out for Gene's hand, her nerves calming a little as his fingers knotted with hers, squeezing them tight.

'We have decided, that....' he trailed off, as though announcing a competition winner. 'You will become the legal guardians of Milly Jones.'

A gasp of relief burst forth from Alex as she lifted a hand to her mouth, her eyes wide with happiness. 'Really?'

Gene looked down at Milly, stroking her hair back. 'See, told you it'd be alright. Nothing to worry 'bout, Milly.'

Milly smiled up at him and turned to look at the man and woman. 'Thank you!' She said sweetly, hugging Gene and planting a slightly sloppy kiss on his cheek.

Ten minutes later, the papers were all signed, filed away and confirmed. Alex and Gene had formally adopted Milly. And so they left the small, annoyingly cosy community centre together, Milly in between them, holding both their hands. They made their way to the park, the sun shining in a strangely fitting gesture as they entered, Milly running for the swings.

'Well, we did it, Bolly.' Gene said, looking at her, fascinated by the way her face was lit up – it seemed positively luminous under the bright sunlight.

Alex smiled widely at him, glancing over at Milly who was on the swings, a couple of yards from them. 'Yeah, we did.'

Gene stepped closer, his hand coming up to thread through her glossy hair. 'Now there's just little Hunt to come.' He said quietly before leaning in and kissing her gently, his arms wrapping tightly around her waist. 'I love you.' He whispered as she pressed her forehead against his.

Alex couldn't resist grinning as she replied. 'I love you too.'

* * *

**I have to confess I don't really know how the adoption system really works – so I hope that meeting thing was reasonably plausible. Please tell me what you think and check out the first chapter of me new story! X =D**


	36. Epilogue Lucy Hunt

**Hi, so here it is....the final instalment of the story. I don't want to sound all cheesy and award-ceremony-ish now so I'll keep this short. I want to thank you all so, so much for being so brilliant and I'm really glad you enjoyed this story as much as I've enjoyed writing it. I'm still astounded by the number of reviews and response I've got for it so thank you all very much! So without further ado....here you go!**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Ashes to Ashes.**

**Epilogue – Lucy Hunt**

* * *

Gene paused at the hospital door to check that Milly was keeping up. He frowned for a moment, his eyes searching the path for a flash of her red hair, but he needn't have worried. She quickly appeared, a toothy grin stretching from ear to ear as she tugged on her school blazer and ran up to him. She stretched her arms up in silent glee and he bent to pick her up, swinging her around so she was sat on his hip. Anyone watching would have been certain he was her rightful father.

'Yer really are too big fer this, Milly.' He told her as they made their way in across the bare reception area to the desk. 'Yer said on yer birthday that yer were a big girl now.'

Milly just smiled and slipped down to her feet. She stood on her tiptoes to peer over the desk, her stomach practically bubbling with excitement as she hopped up and down, eyes wide with anticipation.

'Alex Hunt, please, love.' Gene said to the kindly woman behind the desk as he glanced at Milly, the corner of his mouth twitching up slightly when he saw how excited she was. Truth be told, he could barely contain his own excitement. He had a daughter – a tiny, beautiful and precious little daughter who was every bit as important as the other two females in his life and he couldn't wait to see her. Couldn't wait to hold her small, warm body in his arms and feel her hands clutch his fingers as she opened her eyes to see her Daddy for the first time.

The woman looked up and smiled at him and Milly. 'Room thirty-four, just down the corridor.'

Gene nodded and tapped Milly affectionately on the shoulder. 'Come on little Lady, let's go see yer new baby sister, ey?'

Milly nodded and skipped off in front of him, weaving her way in and out of nurses and patients as she beamed like the midday sun. Eventually she stopped and looked back down the corridor, waiting for Gene. 'Come on!' She called impatiently, her hand already reaching for the door handle.

Gene smiled as he reached her. 'I'm 'ere, I'm 'ere. Go on in then, before yer burst with excitement.'

Milly grinned and pushed the handle down. She immediately fell silent though as she entered the peaceful room and Gene followed quickly behind. The door shut behind them and Gene's face spread into a rare grin as his wife looked up from the hospital bed, a tiny bundle of pink blankets in her arms. She looked exhausted, her eyes were drooping and expression tired – but Gene could barely tell. Because on top of that, her skin was glowing with happiness and her eyes radiant as she stared down at the baby in her arms.

'Come on, Milly – come and meet your new baby sister.' She said softly as Milly slowly made her way over, all traces of impatience now dispelled by the magical charm the sleeping baby seemed to hold over the room. She seemed almost nervous as she approached the bedside and peered at the little girl in Alex's arms.

Alex reached out to push the blankets down so Milly could see, and she let out a soft sigh of delight. A wide smile spread once more over Milly's face as she reached out, ever so slowly, to touch her sister's cheek. Alex and Gene both watched as a fascinated Milly stroked the baby's smooth skin, her eyes wide and face amazed.

'Cute baby....' Milly murmured, quite obviously completely taken by the sleeping baby as her fingers caressed her face.

Alex smiled and nodded, reaching her own hand out to touch her daughter's cheek. 'She's gorgeous...'

Milly grinned and stepped back, dropping into the seat next to the bed, her eyes still fixed on her sister's closed ones. She looked as if she'd never tear her eyes away, like her sister was suddenly the most precious thing in the world to her – a tiny baby that she'd protect with her life.

Alex dragged her eyes away from her new daughter up to Gene, a soft smile lighting up her features. 'Come and hold her.' She said gently as Gene walked forward and she held her out.

Gene settled himself on the bed, his eyes also fixed on the tiny baby in Alex's arms. 'Are yer sure, Bolls...I'm not really sure how t'...'

Alex laughed lightly and extended her arms further, slightly reluctant as Gene took their baby from her. 'You'll be fine, Gene.' She told him, watching as Gene bent his head forward to peer at his daughter for the first time.

His eyes grew wide as he took in the perfectly round face, the peaceful, sleeping expression and plump, rosebud lips. As if in awe, he placed a finger gently on the side of her face, running it carefully down over the soft flesh as though scared she might break. How on earth could he have had a hand in making something so.....perfect? It was impossible for him, surely. He met Alex's eyes and for a moment they just gazed at each other, it was only when her face blurred before his eyes that he realised that tears had formed in the corners of his eyes. He looked back down at his baby daughter, still stroking her face lightly with his finger. 'She's beautiful, Bolls.....beautiful.'

Alex smiled as she felt her eyes mist over too. Seeing Gene holding their daughter in his arms just looked so....so right. So completely and utterly and breathtakingly _right_. And she knew she had made the right decision. This was where she belonged, where she was needed now.

She missed Molly, yearned for her with all her heart – but she was a big girl, a strong, beautiful girl and Alex loved her like mad. But she'd gone....she had no place in that world anymore – it was like a splendid garden, closed off to her so tightly that she couldn't even see it anymore. But she knew Molly was there, and she knew she was safe.

So she was left in this garden, where at first, there hadn't really been much. But then things had grown, slowly, but beautifully. The garden had grown and flourished until brand new shoots burst through the ground, giving new life and a clean slate. And now, looking around this beautiful garden where she was surrounded by people she loved and who loved her back....she couldn't help but call it home. Because she knew Molly was just in the next garden, separated by a mere wall and a securely locked gate. But she was there, and she was safe and, Alex hoped, she was happy.

'She is.' She whispered, touching her daughter's forehead lightly as she gestured to Milly to sit up on the bed too. 'She is.'

* * *

The door shut quietly behind Gene and Milly as they went to get Alex a drink. It was about the only time Gene had ever closed a door quietly; the thought made Alex chuckle slightly as she looked down at her now awake baby daughter. Piercing blue eyes like her father's stared up at her in wonder as she gurgled quietly, her small yet surprisingly strong hand clutching at Alex's forefinger and Alex couldn't help but keep smiling. She'd forgotten how good it felt – to hold a tiny, warm person in your arms and know that you had created them....it was unlike any other feeling, it was just....bliss.

'Can I see?'

A voice startled her and Alex looked up, eyes suddenly alert as her arms tightened slightly around her daughter's small body in an unconscious move to protect her. But upon seeing the sight before her, she relaxed, her whole expression softening as her eyes widened.

'Molls?'

The girl smiled and took a step forward, looking at the baby in Alex's arms with gentle eyes. Her wavy hair was pulled back in a ponytail and she was taller, her cheekbones more prominent and lips slightly thinner. The birthmark that had once been all too visible on her cheek was covered by a light layer of foundation, but Alex would know her daughter anywhere, young or old. And this was her daughter. Her Molly.

'She's beautiful, Mum. Really beautiful.' She murmured. She'd reached the bed now and had sat down on the seat that Milly had occupied just moments before. She didn't reach out to touch her Mum or her half-sister, but instead just sat, content to look and smile.

Alex guessed that she couldn't touch. A glowing, shimmering light surrounded her daughter like a halo and for some reason, Alex felt that she only had so much time and that when the light faded away – so would her daughter. 'Just like you were...._are_, Molls.' She stopped and looked up from the baby in her arms to gaze at Molly. She drank in her matured features, the sharp line of her nose and soft curve of her cheek.

'You look so grown up, so beautiful....' She whispered, her hand hovering in midair, wanting to touch but knowing somehow that she couldn't.

Molly glanced at her mum's hand sadly. 'You can't touch me, Mum...I haven't got long. But I had to see her, and you.'

Alex smiled and nodded, ordering herself not to cry. She wouldn't ruin this by crying, wouldn't allow tears to mist her vision. 'You're so grown up...' she said again, a lump forming in her throat as she thought of all the things she had missed. Molly's GCSEs, boyfriends, school dances, trips....everything that was a part of her childhood – and she couldn't share it with her Mum. 'How old are you now?' Alex couldn't help asking.

Molly pulled her eyes up from the baby in Alex's arms to meet her eyes. 'Eighteen. I go away to Cambridge in a month...Evan took me out for this really fancy meal when we found out I'd got in.' A wide smile spread across her face, showing even, white teeth.

Alex almost exploded with pride and she couldn't help but beam back. 'Congratulations, Molls....I always knew you could do it. My clever Molly.'

Molly smiled and her hand twitched, as though she longed to touch her Mum or baby sister. 'I have to go soon....what are you going to call her?'

Alex glanced down at her baby daughter, her eyes wandering over her perfect features. 'I'm not sure,' she murmured, looking back up at Molly. 'What do you think?'

Molly grinned. 'Lucy.'

Alex couldn't help laughing as Molly quoted the name that she'd always longed to be called. Ever since Alex had read her 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' when she was seven, Lucy had been her favourite character and it seemed some things never changed. 'How did I not guess?'

Molly shrugged, her smile lessening slightly and as it did so, Alex noticed with a deep stab of sadness that the glowing light around her daughter was fading. It wasn't long now.

'Molls?'

'Yeah?' Molly replied, smiling again.

Alex's eyes connected with hers and she reached out a hand. Although she knew she couldn't touch her daughter, she let it linger near her cheek where the fading light illuminated the tips of her fingers. 'I love you. So, so much and I'm so proud, Molls....I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you. I'm sorry I couldn't drive you to your first school dance, or see you get your exam results....or tell you off for chasing some idiotic boy who never deserved you in the first place....'

'Mum...'

'I'm sorry I couldn't be a proper Mum to you, Molls.' There were tears in both women's eyes now as they gazed at each other with misted vision, the lump in Alex's throat growing raw and painful as she attempted to swallow it down.

'You'll always be a proper Mum to me, no matter what. I love you, Mum.' Molly told her, her voice coming out as a hoarse whisper as she tried not to cry.

Alex smiled weakly as the light continued to fade, her fingers reaching out and grasping for what she couldn't hold. 'I know....I love you too, Molls. Happy Birthday.'

And with that, Molly was gone. Leaving nothing but an empty seat and large, salty tears streaming down Alex's face as she cradled her daughter, Lucy, tight to her chest.

* * *

Alex was snoring lightly in the bed as Gene stood by the cot, gazing down at his daughter. The only light came from a lamp on the chest of drawers as it fell across her face and cast shadows across Gene's. His lips curved up into a small smile as he reached out to run his finger down the side of Lucy's face and pull up the blankets further.

A daughter. He, Gene Hunt, had a daughter. A beautiful, gorgeous, perfect little daughter. He couldn't quite believe it, if he was honest. How had something like this come from him? How on earth had he ended up with a gorgeous wife and two perfect little girls...it just wasn't plausible. In fact, if someone had told him this two years ago, he'd have laughed in their face and told them they were pissed. But not now. Now, this was all he wanted.

Her name was Lucy Hunt. And she didn't know for a long time that her Dad could cause a villain to confess all his secrets with one mean glare and a well aimed punch, she didn't really find out just how many insulting, sexist lines he could come out with....all she knew was that he was Daddy, and he was the best Daddy in the whole wide world.

* * *

**And so there it is! I hope you all enjoyed it and please leave me one last review! Thanks so much for all your support and I hope you'll like my new Ashes to Ashes story – 'Rock 'N' Roll Suicide'. X =D**


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